Kibaale National Park: Uganda's Destination for Chimpanzees
Kibaale National Park: Uganda's Destination for Chimpanzees
The most accessible of Uganda's major rainforests, Kibaale is home to a remarkable 13 primate species. Kibaale's 1450 chimpanzee represent Uganda's largest population of this endangered primate. It is also home to the rare L'Hoest's monkey and East Africa's largest population of the threatened red colobus monkey. Other primates include the black and white colobus, blue monkey, grey cheeked mangabey, red tailed monkey, olive baboon, bush baby and potto.
John Batandashi, the head guide of the park, says, Kibaale's major attraction is the opportunity to track these delightful apes and watch as they squabble and play in fruit trees, adding that a network of shady forest trails provides much to delight botanists and butterfly lovers, while birders are in for a treat with 335 species available including the endemic Prigogine's Ground Thrush.
It is a very surreal experience tracking man's cousins' and seeing the way they feed, climb trees, respond to humans and care for their young ones. Chimpanzee tracking is one of the most loved activities at Kibaale National Park in Kamwenge District (situated in the south western part of Uganda), attracting tourists from various countries around the world for a Uganda safari.
There are 90 per cent chances of viewing the chimpanzees either by luck, following sounds of the troops moving through forests, or going to their usual camps. Chimpanzees are quite habituated to human presence, so they do not run as humans walk nearby, but it is unacceptable to mimic them, get near them or eat in their presence as this could provoke them.
A chimpanzees' day starts at 6:30a.m as they leave their nests to have breakfast and start moving through the forest to look for food. They then rest to groom each other as others mate. After this break, they have lunch, rest again, then move in groups of 20 until they find an appropriate place for nesting at around 6p.m.
Batandashi says "Chimpanzees have a great phobia for snakes and run upon seeing them, but will fight and kill any chimp foreign to a group, unless it's a female without a male baby. If it has a male baby, the baby is killed for fear that it could take over their females."
Southern Kibaale adjoins Queen Elizabeth national park and together these protected areas maintain a 180km long migration corridor for wildlife which extends from Ishasha, the remote southern sector of Queen Elizabeth national park, to the Sebitoli forest in the north of Kibaale.
Other mammals though rarely seen, present in Kibaale include forest elephant, buffalo, leopard, bush pig, and duiker. A keen observer may also spot reptiles and amphibians as well as a colourful variety of butterflies. The park also boasts of 325 species of birds. About 20 metres from the park's main gate are fairly large families of baboons.
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