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Kissidougou Forest Islands & Sacred Groves
Kissidougou Prefecture, forest-savanna mosaic, Upper Guinea
Guinea
Active
Regional cluster
- Location
- Kissidougou Prefecture, forest-savanna mosaic, Upper Guinea
- Coordinates
- ~9.18°N 10.1°W
- Elevation
- Forest-savanna transition
- Size
- Peri-village forest islands (varies)
- Age / Founded
- Created over generations by villagers (anthropogenic)
- Status
- Active
- Deity & Religion
- Ancestral/initiation spirits; Kissi & Kuranko traditional religion
- Community & Guardians
- Kissi, Kuranko & other Kissidougou villagers
- Vernacular name
- Forest island / bois sacré
- Record type
- Regional cluster
Cultural practices & uses
Peri-village forest islands grown from savanna; initiation & sacred groves within; ritual & resource use
Plant species
Planted/encouraged semi-deciduous forest around villages
Biome & fauna
Guinean forest-savanna mosaic
Threats & protection
Human-created (not relics); challenge colonial 'degradation' narrative (Fairhead & Leach)
Source
Fairhead & Leach, 'Misreading the African Landscape'; 'Reading Forest History Backwards: Guinea's Forest-Savanna Mosaic'