Page:Niger Delta Ecosystems- the ERA Handbook, 1998.djvu/60

What is the Niger Delta? Because it is the most immediately obvious manifestation to an observer, ecozones and their ecosystems are often described only in terms of their vegetation. However, as the preceding sections have emphasised, an ecosystem is the product of vegetation, animal communities and, most particularly in the case of the Niger delta, the soils and soil-water regime.

ERA definitions and abbreviations are used as the terminology for this book; they may overlap or differ with other descriptions (none of which are definitive) but are consistent and relevant to our concerns.

Map 4 shows the distribution of the ecozones and sub-ecozones, as listed below. 58