Forest climbers in West Africa: Introduction, F Bongers, M P E Parren M D Swaine, University of Aberdeen, UK, and D Traore; A botanical synopsis of the lianas and other forest climbers, C C H Jongkind, Wageningen University, The Netherlands, and W D Hawthorne, University of Oxford, UK; On censusing lianas: a review of common methodologies, M P E Parren, F Bongers, G Caballe, Unite Mixte de Recherche, France, J Nabe-Nielsen, The Royal Veterinarian and Agricultural University, Denmark, and S A Schnitzer, University of Wisconsin, USA; The role of lianas in gap regeneration and in community wide species richness, S A Schnitzer and F Bongers; Climber abundance, diversity and colonisation in degraded forests of different ages in Cote d'lvoire, M E Kuzee and F Bongers, Wageningen University, The Netherlands; Climbing plants in Ghanaian forests, M D Swaine; W D Hawthorne, F Bongers, and M Toledo Aceves, University of Aberdeen, UK; Climbers in forest fragments in Togo, K Kokou, Universite du Benin. Benin, and G Caballe; Taxonomic diversity of climbers in riparian forests in Benin A K Natta and B Sinsin, Cotonou, Benin; The climbers of a semi-deciduous forests in Cote d'lvoire: the case of Haut Sassandra, D T Etien and D Traore, University of Cocody, Cote d'lvoire; Taxonomy, population dynamics and utilisation of the rattan palms of Upper Guinea, T C H Sunderland, V Beligne and L Bonnehin, Cote d'lvoire, E Ebanyenle and A Oteng-Amoako, Forestry Research Institute of Ghana, Ghana, and E-J Zouzou; Utilisation of climbers in two forests reserves in western Cote d'lvoire, H F Tra Bi, Universite de'Abobo-Adjame, Cote d'lvoire, F N' Kouame, University of Cocody, Cote d'lvoire, and D Traore; Logging and lianas in West Africa, M P E Parren and F Doumbia; Climbers after logging: the case of Haut Sassandra, F N' Kouame, D Traore, F Bongers and L Poorter, Wageningen University, The Netherlands; Management of climbers in the forests of West Africa, M P E Parren and F Bongers