﻿166 JAS. J. SIMPSON — ENTOMOLOGICAL 



South of Abo the true delta of the Niger commences, and the various outlets 

 to the sea have received definite names. The first of these to be navigated was 

 what is known as the Nun entrance in the Eastern Province, but this channel has 

 been abandoned for some time in favour of a larger one, which enters the sea at 

 Forcados. Consequently, the Niger as a river navigable for large craft may be 

 said to be almost entirely confined to the Central Province. 



Most of the large ramifications in the delta area have been named after the 

 chief towns which they pass, for example, the Benin River, the Warri River, the 

 Forcados River and the Sapele River, while others are known as the Escravos 

 River, the Ramos River and the Dodo River. These are all in the Central 

 Province, but it must be remembered that they are in reality only creeks in the 

 delta, which receive the subsidiary waters of the smaller streams in the Province, 

 and are not in themselves distinct from each other. 



The high lands of Ishan, Agbor and Kwale form a dividing line between the 

 tributaries of the Niger which flow to the east and the numerous small streams 

 which are directed westwards. Of the latter the most important is the Ovia 

 River, which rises in the Kabba Province in Northern Nigeria, and, after flow- 

 ing practically due south, pours its waters into the Benin River. Its chief 

 tributary is the Ogbesse River, which rises in the Ilesha district in the Western 

 Province, and enters the Central Province between Akure and Owo. The 

 Osiomo River, which passes Benin City, also flows into the Benin River, and 

 further east the Jameson River and the Ethiope River unite to form the Sapele 

 River, which again in turn joins the Benin River. The River Warri rises in the 

 Kwale district and enters the system of creeks near the town of the same name ; 

 this again joins the Forcados River before entering the sea. 



It will thus be seen that the river-system of the Central Province is a very 

 complicated network of creeks, fed chiefly by the Niger, but also to a certain 

 extent by several small streams from the north-west. These creeks are connected 

 with the series of lagoons in the Western Province which have been already 

 described, and also with similar creeks in the Eastern Province, and it is thus 

 possible to pass by launch from Badagri in the extreme West to Calabar and 

 eventually to the Kamaruns without entering the open sea. 



Politically, the Central Province is divided into 15 districts, each of which I 

 now propose to discuss in turn as briefly as possible. For the present purpose, 

 they may be conveniently divided into five groups, in accordance with the various 

 types of physical configuration already discussed. 



(1) Ifon and Benin. 



This region is comparable in many respects, and geographically is coterminous, 

 with the Ilesha district in the Western Province. To the north and east of Ifon 

 the country is open and hilly, while in the Kukuruku country, which extends into 

 the Kabba Province of Northern Nigeria, it is very rocky. To the south and 

 west there is extensive thick bush and large timber forests, which gradually merge 

 into the Forests of Ondo, referred to elsewhere. Game is abundant. Elephant, 

 leopard, buffalo, hartebeeste, waterbuck, duiker, harnessed antelope, wild pig 

 and baboons are all said to occur. No tsetse have been recorded from this 



