AFP, Gogotinkpon

The banks and delta of the Mono River in Benin are home to mangrove swamps which harbour fish and rare wild birds -- and some are deemed sacred.

The government has tried to protect them by imposing bans on overfishing and felling for firewood. But it has discovered that voodoo is more powerful than threats and is now seeking to co-opt traditional elders into its conservation plans.

In the southern village of Gogotinkpon, which lives off fishing in Lake Aheme, locals regularly turn to the deities to help mark off stretches of mangroves as sacred areas.

To the rhythm of drums and gongs, they swirl and dance before voodoo masks in ceremonies to honour Zangbeto, the guardian of the night.