Congo Basin In contrast to the great expanse of desert to the north, the Congo river basin is a vast, lush, verdant jungle, boasting a seemingly endless variety of plants, animals, and insects. To the south and almost drowning out the loud chorus of insects is the distant sound of bulldozers tearing down the last, small remnants of this rich and once vast ecoscape. Another disruptive element is the series of railroad tracks crisscrossing the besieged jungle as trains regularly haul supplies to the construction site, or to the mines to the southeast, or to and from the Merchant Republic. Other, less obvious anomalies are concealed in the central region of the rainforest, and the restless jungle can be most dangerous to those unwelcome here.