January 02, 2022 | Bujo Safaris
Chimpanzees do not eat people, however, there have been cases of them attacking humans (with fatal attacks on children). Many instances of chimp attacks have been recorded including a pet chimpanzee attack in Stamford and the 2014 incident in Muhorro, Uganda when a chimpanzee ran away with the baby. Similar cases of chimpanzee attacks on humans were experienced in 2013 when a 7-year-old child in Bwikara, Kibale was attacked while walking in Kibale National Park. Related stories of chimpanzee attacks have also been recorded in Gombe National Park & Mahale National Park in Tanzania. Important note: a fully grown-up chimp is 4-6 times stronger than an adult man. There are many reasons why chimpanzees attack humans most primarily habitat encroachment. When forests where these apes live are cleared, chimpanzees may be forced to get into the adjacent local communities. Besides, chimps can be very aggressive like humans, and a fact that we have a lot in common- sharing up to 98% of their DNA and they can be unfriendly at times, especially to unrelated individuals.
The primary food for chimpanzees includes berries, leaves, seeds, fruits, barks, and at times insects, honey, and eggs but this is also on rare occasions. While they are largely vegetarians, at times they eat meat as they are known to hunt and kill small/young monkeys. Compared to some mammals in the wild, chimpanzees are the most intelligent, sociable, and communicative creatures. They use tools like empty pods to scoop water, rocks to smash open nuts, and sticks to tap termites.
Chimpanzees/ Pan Troglodytes, besides bonobos, are the only 2 species of the genus Pan. These are the two closest living relatives to humans with chimpanzees having 98% of their DNA similar to that of humans. Chimpanzees are also among the 4 living Great Apes and the other 3 include gorillas, bonobos, and orangutans. Wild chimpanzees can be spotted only in the tropical forests in Africa and they prefer living on altitudinal ranges of 3000m – 3500m above sea level. Others thrive in the less densely vegetated savanna mosaics, swamp forests, and dry savannas. There are fewer than 55,000 left in Africa with eastern chimpanzees inhabiting parts of the Central African Republic and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The majority of them also live in Eastern Africa, particularly in Western Uganda (Uganda is estimated to host over 5000 chimpanzees alone).
In captivity, chimpanzees can live for 30-60 years unlike in the wild where these apes are said not to live more than 50 years. However, it is not easy to gauge how long chimps can live while in the wild.
Chimpanzees can climb, swing on trees, and knuckle walk. They are also capable of walking upright using two feet. They live in communities or troops of up to 150 members and have hierarchies, with an adult Alpha male being the dominant.
At 13 years, female chimpanzees are believed to have reached their reproductive maturity. A single female chimpanzee gives birth to a single baby and on rare occasions, they produce twins. They take up to 8-9 months to give birth- a gestation period similar to that of humans.
Top places to go for chimpanzee tracking in Uganda include Budongo Forest, Kibale National Park, Kalinzu Forest & Kyambura Gorge. Chimpanzees in Tanzania are found in Mahale Mountains National Park (MMNP) and Gombe National Park in the western region. A section of chimpanzees also lives in Burundi, South Sudan, and Rwanda in Nyungwe Forest National Park & Gishwati-Mukura National Park. However, Uganda’s Kibale Forest National Park is renowned as the primate capital of the world having the largest population of chimpanzee individuals in the world.
Kibale Forest National Park is located in the Western part of Uganda covering an area of about 975sqkm habiting about 1500 chimpanzee individuals as well as other endemic primate species. The park is also home to a variety of flora and fauna including, forest elephants, buffaloes, bushbucks, reedbucks, baboons, and L’Hoest Monkeys, as well as 355 bird species such as Lizard Buzzard, Blue-spotted Wood Dove, Great Blue Turaco, Blue-breasted Kingfisher, Black-and-white Casqued Hornbill, Woodland Kingfisher, Pygmy Kingfisher, Hairy-breasted Barbet, Double-toothed Barbet, little Greenbul, Winding Cisticola, Zitting Cisticola, Green Crombec, Black-and-white Shrike-Flycatcher, Black-headed Gonolek, Bronze Sunbird, Fan-tailed Widowbird, Black Bishop, Black-crowned Waxbill. The process of encountering chimpanzees in their natural habitat is called Chimpanzee trekking.
Journey to Uganda’s Primate capital Kibale Forest National Park and meet the incredible chimpanzees in their natural habitat to create an extraordinary safari in Africa. Arrive at the visitor’s information center at Kanyanchu for a briefing about chimpanzee trekking including the dos and don'ts. The briefing will require you to have chimpanzee trekking permits, Mosquito repellent, sunglasses, and Long-sleeved pants among others.
Later, you shall be assigned a ranger to lead the chimpanzee trekking process for security and trekking trails in the park as you navigate through the forests with a variety of viewing opportunities of birds such as hairy-breasted barbet, yellow-billed barbet, shrike flycatcher Bocage’s bush shrike, and Black-crowned waxbill until you meet the chimpanzees. Travelers on a Uganda chimpanzee trekking safari are allowed to spend only one hour with the chimpanzees as they learn about their feeding style and behaviors and watch them play and groom themselves. Return to the starting point and receive your Chimpanzee trekking certificate from the Uganda Wildlife Authority making memories of a lifetime during your safari to Africa.
Optional Chimpanzee Habituation in Kibale Forest National Park
Chimpanzee Habituation is a process of familiarizing chimpanzee individuals with human presence. The chimpanzee Habituation process is far better than chimpanzee trekking though it comes at an extra cost. Here, travelers are allowed to spend 4 hours with chimpanzees, and by doing this, you are contributing to the conservation of chimpanzees and their natural habitat.
How much is a chimpanzee trekking permit in Kibale Forest National Park, Uganda?
Chimpanzee trekking experience requires necessary documents such as a chimpanzee trekking permit. A document that allows travelers to track the chimpanzees in their natural habitat. A chimpanzee trekking permit costs USD 250 (Foreign Non-residents), USD 200 (Foreign Residents), and UGX 300, 000 for East African Citizens. A chimpanzee Habituation permit costs USD 300 (Foreign Non-Residents), USD 250 (Foreign Residents) and UGX 250, 000.
How can I get to Kibale Forest National Park, Uganda?
The park is located in southwestern Uganda which is about 5 to 6 hours drive from Kampala via Mityana Fort Portal Road. The park can be reached by either road or air transport depending on the budget of the traveler. One can take a flight from Kajjansi Airstrip to Kasese Airstrip for about 2 hours. Upon arrival, you will meet your guide and later connect to Kibale Forest National Park by road transport with a stopover in Fort Portal Tourism City. Embark on a Uganda gorilla and chimpanzee trekking safari to Uganda’s Pristine safari destinations that will leave you in a moment of awe making it an extraordinary safari.
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