Bwindi Great Ape Project

The Bwindi Great Ape/Gorilla Project is a collaborative initiative designed not only to increase awareness about the endangered mountain gorillas but also to help the local communities living around protected areas where these unique apes call home. The project operates in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Southwestern Uganda, one of the Africa’s premier gorilla trekking destinations.

The Bwindi Gorilla Project was launched in 1998 and conducts research activities on habituated gorillas. The project focuses on the feeding ecology, social behavior and population dynamics of the present endangered mountain gorillas. The team at the project conducts routine observations on the great apes’ social behaviors, diet and patterns on the 4 gorilla families: Oruzogo, Kyaguriro-Mukiza, Bitukura and Kyaguriro-Rukara.

Bwindi Great Ape Project does collaborate with Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA), particularly on the maintenance of a demographic database of the gorilla families in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. The project plays a significant role in training of the park staff in areas of identifying the gorillas and taking record of all the births, dispersal events and their death details.

All research activities on gorillas in Bwindi are carried out closely with Uganda Wildlife Authority and the Institute for Tropical Forest Conservation. The research project is intended to help in the gorilla management and conservation.

The initiative also provides lessons about conservation to nearby primary schools and this has been happening since 2008. The current and continuing research project includes assessment of growth trajectories, social and ecological correlates of body size using photogrammetry: demographic and life history patterns, cognitive complexity of foraging behavior, development of social relationships and acquisition of diet by immature mountain gorillas; patterns of habitat utilization and others.

The Bwindi Great Ape Project is intended to protect the rare mountain gorillas in Uganda through supporting communities living adjacent to the park. Training is provided to assist monitor gorilla health and other social behaviors as well as safely lead them back to the forest in case they strayed out of the park.

Challenges faced by gorillas in Bwindi

Bwindi gorillas like in other destinations still encounter lots of challenges including spread of infectious diseases, habitat loss, poaching and others. About 1063 endangered mountain gorillas still survive in the entire world and exist in the 3 countries –Uganda, Rwanda and D.R. Congo.

Of the world’s 1063 rare mountain gorillas left on earth, about 459 of them all exist in Bwindi National Park in Uganda. Bwindi is situated in the far Southwestern Uganda and getting there takes 8-9 hours from Kampala and 4-5 hours from Kigali capital.

Bwindi is comprised of 4 regions each offering outstanding gorilla trekking experiences. They include Ruhija, Nkuringo, Rushaga and Buhoma region –these shelter 20 habituated gorilla families –Habinyanja gorilla family, Mubare family, Bitukura gorilla group, Rushegura group, Oruzogo, Kyaguriro, Nkuringo, Katwe, Christmas, Mukiza, Nshongi, Mishaya, Kahungye family and Kutu gorilla families.

The Bwindi Ape Conservation Education Partnership –BACEP

The BACEP is a partnership comprising of the North Carolina Zoo, Cleveland Metro parks, UNITE for the Environment and the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology. The collaboration started in 2014 and builds on the initial conservation education programs that were arranged since 2008 by the Bwindi Gorilla Project of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology.

The initiative intends to conserve endangered great ape species in Bwindi National Park using community conservation awareness programs. The partnership currently works with 4 primary schools situated adjacent to the park boundaries and include Mburameizi Primary School, Ruhija, Kanyashogi Primary Scool, and Bitanwa Primary School. Activities done by BACEP do benefit the families and communities living adjacent to the park with over 400 students already listed among the beneficiaries.

The local residents living adjacent to the park have inadequate knowledge about environment, conservation issues and gorillas. This means that there is need to create awareness among the locals and in addition, there is need to enhance the educational standards plus infrastructure of the schools.

BACEP plays a significant part in offering conservation education lessons on a monthly routine to classes ranging from P.6 to P.7. This is done across the 4 primary schools and lessons cover areas such as gorilla behaviors, and ecology of great apes plus conservation challenges they encounter.

Avail teacher training workshops as a way to develop the knowledge of the teachers, especially when it comes to conservation and methods of student centered teaching.

The initiative also offers hands-on activity experiences such as forest walks, tree nurseries, and litter pick up days.

The partnership does evaluate the effectiveness of the teacher training workshops and numerous activities carried out by the project.