{{short description|Mountainous area in Somaliland}} {{Infobox settlement | official_name = Gaanlibah | other_name = Ga'an Libah, Gan Libah<ref name="Pease1913" /> | native_name = Gacan Libaax | nickname = | settlement_type = Archaeological site | motto = | image_skyline = Gacan Libaax, Somaliland.jpg | imagesize = | image_caption = Gaanlibah mountain range | image_flag = | flag_size = | image_seal = | seal_size = | image_map = | mapsize = | map_caption = | pushpin_map = Marodi Jeh#Somaliland#Africa | pushpin_label_position = bottom | pushpin_mapsize = | pushpin_map_caption = Location in the Horn of Africa | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = {{flag|Somaliland}} | subdivision_type1 = Region | subdivision_name1 = Maroodi Jeex & Hargeisa District | subdivision_type2 = District | subdivision_name2 = | government_footnotes = | government_type = | leader_title = | leader_name = | established_title = | established_date = | area_magnitude = | unit_pref = Metric | area_footnotes = | area_total_km2 = | area_land_km2 = | population_as_of = | population_footnotes = | population_note = | population_total = | population_density_km2 = | timezone = EAT | utc_offset = +3 | timezone_DST = | utc_offset_DST = | coordinates = {{coord|9.8613886|N|44.8148563|E|display=title,inline}} | elevation_footnotes = | elevation_m = | elevation_ft = | postal_code_type = | postal_code = | area_code = | blank_name = | blank_info = | website = | name = }}
'''Gaanlibah''' or '''Ga'an Libah''' ({{langx|so|Gacan Libaax}}) English : The lion's paw ) is a mountain range, archaeological site, and national park located in the Maroodi Jeex region of Somaliland.<ref name="Mheah">{{cite book|last=Hodd|first=Michael|title=East African Handbook|year=1994|publisher=Trade & Travel Publications|isbn=0844289833|page=640|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bL8tAQAAIAAJ}}</ref><ref name="Astgi">{{cite book|last=Ali|first=Ismail Mohamed|title=Somalia Today: General Information|year=1970|publisher=Ministry of Information and National Guidance, Somali Democratic Republic|page=295|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tMVAAAAAYAAJ}}</ref>
==Geography== The site is near the Golis Mountains.<ref name="Pease1913">{{cite book |last=Pease |first=A. E. |author-link=Alfred Edward Pease |title=The Book of the Lion |publisher=John Murray |chapter=IV: Of dangerous game |pages=46−68 |location=London |year=1913 |chapter-url=https://archive.org/stream/bookoflion1913alfr#page/56/mode/2up}}</ref><ref>UNEP-WCMC (2022). Protected Area Profile for Ga'an Libah from the World Database of Protected Areas. Accessed 26 February 2022. [https://www.protectedplanet.net/555629378]</ref> Its upper slopes are the source of the seasonal Togdheer river that flows through the city of Burao into the Nugaal Valley.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Ga'an Libah Reserve {{!}} Visit Horn of Africa|url=https://visithornafrica.com/gaan-libah-reserve/|access-date=2021-01-31|website=visithornafrica.com/|language=en-US}}</ref> Gaanlibah is not far from Laas Geel and around {{convert|100|km|mi|abbr=on}} east of the provincial capital Hargeisa. It is in the western part of the northern mountains, which extend east and west parallel to the northern coast of the Horn of Africa.
==Flora and fauna== The natural vegetation includes evergreen and semi-evergreen bushland and thicket at lower elevations, dominated by the shrub ''Buxus hildebrandtii'', which cover approximately 20,000 ha. Woodlands of African juniper and other Afromontane plant communities occur at higher elevations, and cover about 30,000 ha.<ref name = birdlife>BirdLife International (2022) Important Bird Areas factsheet: Gacan Libaax. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 26/02/2022.</ref>
Mammals recorded here include hamadryas baboon, klipspringer, beira and dorcas gazelle.<ref name = birdlife/>
The site has been designated an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International.<ref name=bli>{{cite web |url= https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/gacan-libaax-iba-somalia|title= Gacan Libaax|author=<!--Not stated--> |date=2024|website= BirdLife Data Zone|publisher= BirdLife International|access-date= 2024-10-31}}</ref> Native birds include the sombre rock chat, Gambaga flycatcher and Somali golden-winged grosbeak.<ref name = birdlife/>
==Rock art== The site features a number of caves adorned with rock art of animals and other figures. As no major archaeological excavation has been conducted here, the Gaanlibah paintings are of uncertain origin, purpose and date.<ref name="Mheah"/><ref name="Astgi"/>
{{Portal|Somaliland}}
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== * [https://geographic.org/geographic_names/name.php?uni=-4563360&fid=5790&c=somalia Gaan Libah: Somalia] * [https://www.geody.com/geospot.php?world=terra&ufi=-3221498&alc=gnl Buuraha Gacanlibaax / Gaan Libah / Gan Libah]
Category:Archaeological sites in Somaliland Category:National parks of Somaliland Category:Important Bird Areas of Somaliland Category:Somali montane xeric woodlands