Niger River Niger River The Niger River (; , ) is the principal river of West Africa, extending about . Its drainage basin is in area. Its source is in the Guinea Highlands in southeastern Guinea. It runs in a crescent through Mali, Niger, on the border with Benin and then through Nigeria, discharging through a massive delta, known as the Niger Delta or the Oil Rivers, into the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean. The Niger is the third-longest river in Africa, exceeded only by the Nile and the Congo River (also known as the Zaïre River). Its main tributary
Nile monitor Nile monitor The Nile monitor ("Varanus niloticus") is a large member of the monitor family (Varanidae) found throughout much of Africa, but is absent from the west, where it is replaced by "Varanus stellatus". Other common names include the African small-grain lizard, water leguaan or river leguaan (leguan, leguaan, and likkewaan mean monitor lizard in South African English, and can be used interchangeably). Nile monitors can grow to about in length, with the largest specimens attaining . In an average-sized specimen, the snout-to-vent length will be around . In body mass, adults have been reported to vary widely, one study