| Réserve total de faune & fôret classée du Gadabedji | |
|---|---|
IUCN category IV (habitat/species management area) | |
 Interactive map of Réserve total de faune & fôret classée du Gadabedji | |
| Location | Maradi Region,Niger |
| Nearest city | Dakoro,Bader, Niger |
| Coordinates | 12°35′59″N2°36′00″E / 12.59972°N 2.60000°E /12.59972; 2.60000 |
| Area | 76,000 hectares |
| Established | 1 January 1955 |
| Governing body | Parcs Nationaux & Reserves - Niger |
TheGadabedji Total Reserve (Réserve totale de Faune du Gadabedji) is a nature reserve in the central region ofNiger. It is a Total Faunal Reserve IUCN type IV, covering some 76,000 hectares within the northern tip of theMaradi Region, just north of the town ofDakoro, and south of the border with theAgadez Region.The reserve is also recognizedbiosphere reserve by theUnesco since 2017.[1]
The reserve, originally established 25 April 1955, by Law No. 3120/S.E. is also a 'fôret classée'. It covers a small area ofSahelian wooded steppe and grassland, south of theAïr Mountains.
Gadabedji Total Reserve was planned to protect Sahelo-Saharan antelopes, mainly theScimitar-horned oryx andDama gazelle populations which have largely disappeared due to local population pressures.[2] In the 1940s, the area was along an important migration route for the animals from the Tenere desert to theAdar in the south of the country. It remains a transhumance route for domesticated cattle and camels, as well as some wild Dorcas and Ménas Gazelles.[3] The reserve is a proposed site of future Oryx reintroduction.[4]