Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary, Lake Victoria, Uganda

 I’m a little nervous of chimps. Personally, I think it’s because their actions and personalities remind me far too much of us humans. This is also why I am absolutely fascinated by them. When I was in Kampala, Uganda, I took the opportunity to visit the orphaned chimpanzees at the Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary.

I had heard mixed reports about the sanctuary; some had said that it was a must see, while others left me thinking that it could be a waste of time. But after some consideration I took a chance. And I was so glad I did. After a quick breakfast in Kampala, I was taken on an eventful taxi ride through the capital to Entebbe. It was a small matter of a 45-minute boat ride on the largest inland lake in Africa, Lake Victoria, to Ngamba Island.

On the way we passed men on their fishing boats. Pied kingfishers became so common they were like seagulls around a fish- -and-chip shop. I had never seen them so far from shore. Surprises like these became commonplace for me in Uganda and my curiosity for birds grew more and more each day. In my mind, I had already made the right decision.
When we arrived on the island the friendly Ngamba Island staff greeted us. Again birds, this time breeding weavers, on the island immediately distracted me before I was politely asked to join the group for a brief talk. The orientation presentation was a great introduction to the island and its resident chimpanzees. Most of the chimps have come from horrific backgrounds involving either poaching, wildlife trade or habitat destruction and were rescued by the Uganda Wildlife Authority.

But what I found liberating was that the saved chimps had managed to construct an active and reproductive social group on the 40-hectare forest island. So they were as free as they could be and were living as naturally as possible.
What a dream.

Feeding time was a frenzy of excitement. From the advantage of the raised platform you could see the group emerge from the forest. I found it fascinating as the staff told me who was who and what primates’ gestures and actions meant. You could also read the background stories of individual chimps.
The trip was an awesome way to spend a day; not only did I get a boat trip on Lake Victoria and see happy chimps, but my ticket helped towards the conservation of these magnificent great apes.

 

The black-maned lioness of the Okavango

There is a small pride of lions at Mombo Camp in the Okavango called the Western Pride. One particular female within this pride – known by the locals as Mmamoriri – is very special. She has a dark, full mane, making her appear to be a male!

Mombo Camp is situated on the north-western tip of Chiefs Island in the Okavango Delta. Due to the isolation of this area, surrounded on three sides by the permanent swamp, some strange anomalies crop up in the environment.

During the late 1990s, a lioness by the name of Martina was a regular feature on the landscape. She also sported a beautiful, blonde mane – so the current lioness is widely considered to be a descendant this individual. It is unlikely that animals with this condition are able to breed, however, so other genetic factors must be at play here in order for this to occur.

How this aberration comes about is unclear, but Dr. Luke Hunter of Panthera feels that this condition most likely originates either at conception or during fetal development in the womb, resulting in a female offspring having certain male characteristics, or vice-versa.