Skip to main content

Long-term variations of annual and growing season rainfalls in Nigeria

Theoretical and Applied Climatology volume 41, pages 41–53 (1990)Cite this article

Summary

Evidence for changes in the annual and growing season rainfall series for the period 1919 to 1985 in Nigeria are examined on a regional basis, using power-spectral and lowpass filter techniques, and the Mann-Kendall rank statistic. Four regions, the Coastal Zone, the Guinea-Savanna Zone, the Midland area and the Sahel, are used in the investigation of rainfall variation from south to north across the country.

Quasi-periodic oscillations in the annual and growing season rainfall series are found to be concentrated in four spectral bands: 2.0–2.4, 2.7–2.9, 3.2–3.6 and 5.6–6.3 years. The spatial coherence of the fluctuations in annual and growing season rainfall is found to be limited to Nigeria south of 11 degrees north latitude. Evidence also emerges of a progressive decline in annual and growing season rainfall for northern Nigeria, north of nine degrees north latitude, for the period 1939–1985.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Access options

Buy single article

Instant access to the full article PDF.

USD 39.95

Price includes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

References

  • Ayoade, J. O, 1973: Annual rainfall trends and periodicities in Nigeria.Nigeria Geog. J. 16, 167–176.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ayoade, J. O., 1977: Perspectives on the recent drought in the Sudano-Sahelian region of West Africa, with particular reference to Nigeria.Arch. Met. Geoph. Biokl. Ser. B. 25, 67–77.

    Google Scholar 

  • Benoit, P., 1977: The start of the growing season in Northern Nigeria.Agric. Meteor. 8, 91–99.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bryson, R. A., 1973: Climatic modification by air pollution, II: the Sahelian effect. Report No. 9, Inst. Environmental Studies, University of Wisconsin, 12 pp.

  • Bunting, A. H., Dennett, M. D., Elston, J., Milford, J. R., 1976: Rainfall trends in the West African Sahel.Quart. J. Roy. Meteor. Soc. 102, 59–64.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dennett, M. D., Elston J, Rodgers, J. A., 1985: A reappraisal of rainfall trends in the Sahel.J. Climatol. 5, 353–361.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dyer, T. G. J., Marker, M. E., 1978: On the variation of rainfall over South West Africa.S. Afr. Geogr. J. 60, 144–149.

    Google Scholar 

  • Farmer, G., Wigley, T. M. L., 1985: Climatic trends for Tropical Africa. Research Report for Overseas Development Administration, Climatic Research Unit, Univ. East Anglia, UK., 136 pp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gregory, S., 1983: A note on mean seasonal rainfall in the Sahel, 1931–1960 and 1961–1980.Geography 68, 31–36.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hutchinson, P., 1985: Rainfall analysis of the Sahelian drought in the Gambia.J. Climatol. 5, 665–672.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ilesanmi, O. O., 1972: An empirical formulation of the onset, advance and retreat of rainfall in Nigeria.J. Trop. Geog. 34, 17–24.

    Google Scholar 

  • Klaus, D., 1978: Spatial distribution and periodicity of mean annual precipitation south of the Sahara.Arch. Met. Geophys. Biokl. Ser. B. 26, 17–27.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kidson, J. W., 1977: African rainfall and its relation to the upper air circulation.Quart. J. Roy. Meteor. Soc. 103, 441–456.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kowal, J. M., Adeoye, K. B., 1973: An assessment of aridity and severity of the 1972 drought in Northern Nigeria and neighbouring countries.Savanna 2, 145–158.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kowal, J. M., Kassam, A. H., 1975: Rainfall in the Sudan Savanna region of Nigeria.Weather 30, 24–28.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lamb, P. J., 1978: Case studies of tropical Atlantic surface circulation patterns during recent sub-Saharan weather anomalies: 1967 and 1968.Mon. Wea. Rev. 106, 482–491.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lamb, P. J., 1980: Sahelian drought.NZ J. Geog. 68, 12–16.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lamb, P. J., 1982: Persistence of Subsaharan drought.Nature 299, 46–48.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lamb, P. J., 1985: Rainfall in sub-Saharan West Africa during 1941–1983.Z. Gletscherkunde Glaziologie 21, 131–139.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mitchell, J. M., 1966:Climatic Change. WMO Tech. Note 79, Geneva.

  • Nicholson, S. E., 1980: The nature of rainfall fluctuations in subtropical West Africa.Mon. Wea. Rev. 108, 473–487.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nicholson, S. E., 1981: Rainfall and atmospheric circulation during drought periods and wetter years in West Africa.Mon. Wea. Rev. 109, 2191–2208.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nicholson, S. E., Entekhabi, D., 1986: The quasi-periodic behaviour of rainfall variability in Africa and its relationship to the Southern Oscillation.Arch. Met. Geophys. Biokl., Ser. A 34, 311–348.

    Google Scholar 

  • Oguntoyinbo, J. S., Richards, P., 1977: The extent and intensity of the 1969–1973 drought in Nigeria: a provisional analysis. In:Drought in Africa. Dalby D., Church, J. H. and Bezzaz, (eds), 2nd ed., International African Inst., London, 114–126.

    Google Scholar 

  • Oguntoyinbo, J. S., 1981: Climatic variability and food production in West Africa.Geojournal 5, 139–150.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ojo, O., 1977:The Climates of West Africa. Ibadan: Heinemann Press, 218 pp.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ojo, O., 1985: Paleoclimatic evidences from lakes and rivers: some information from recent climatic changes in Africa.Zeitschrift für Gletscherkunde und Glazialgeologie 21, 141–150.

    Google Scholar 

  • Oladipo, E. O., 1987: Power spectral analysis and coherence of drought in the Interior Plains of North America.J. Climatol. 7, 477–491.

    Google Scholar 

  • Olaniran, O. J., 1983a: The onset of rainfall and the start of the growing season in Nigeria.Nigeria Geog. J. 26, 81–88.

    Google Scholar 

  • Olaniran, O. J., 1983b: The monsoon factor and the seasonality of rainfall distribution in Nigeria.Malaysian J. Trop. Geog. 7, 38–45.

    Google Scholar 

  • Olaniran, O. J., 1986: On the classification of tropical climates for the study of regional climatology: Nigeria as a case study.Geografiska Ann. 68A, 233–244.

    Google Scholar 

  • Olaniran, O. J., Sumner, G. N., 1989: A study of climatic change in Nigeria based on the onset, retreat and length of the rainy season.Int. J. Clim. (in press).

  • Rodhe, H., Virji, H., 1976: Trends and periodicities in East African rainfall data.Mon. Wea. Rev. 104, 307–315.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tyson, P. D., Dyer, T. G. J., Mumetse, M. N., 1975: Secular changes in South African rainfall: 1880 to 1972.Quart. J. Roy. Meteor. Soc. 101, 817–832.

    Google Scholar 

  • Winstanley, D., 1973: Rainfall patterns and general atmospheric circulation.Nature 245, 190–194.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography, University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Nigeria

    O. J. Olaniran

  2. Department of Geography, St. David's University College, Lampeter, Dyfed, UK

    G. N. Sumner

Authors
  1. O. J. Olaniran
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. G. N. Sumner
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Additional information

With 5 Figures

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Olaniran, O.J., Sumner, G.N. Long-term variations of annual and growing season rainfalls in Nigeria. Theor Appl Climatol 41, 41–53 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00866201

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00866201

Keywords

  • Waste Water
  • Coherence
  • Nigeria
  • Coastal Zone
  • Lowpass Filter