GOING APE…..the challenges and rewards

GOING APE…..the challenges and rewards

Alan C. Wood…Genus Homo; Species Human, Homo sapiens


There is something inherently fascinating about apes; perhaps that is because we humans are members of the Family Hominidae, one of the four species of great ape, and have much in common with our closest relations in the animal world.

Trekking and tracking our cousins in the wild can be a tiring yet exhilarating experience, especially when you get those encounters where you can observe their features and behaviour, sometimes as they observe you right back.

We have tracked four of the six sub-species of great ape, the exceptions being Bonobo (Genus Pan, Species, Pan paniscus),the same family as chimpanzee, and Sumatran Orang-utan (Genus Pongo, Species Pongo abelii),close relative of its Borneo neighbour. Bonobo can be found in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a country, ironically, often made unsafe for travellers by us, the human apes; Sumatran orang-utans are found in dwindling numbers on the Indonesian island of Sumatra.

Chimpanzees: Genus Pan; Species, Pan troglodytes

Scientists say that DNA evidence reveals humans and chimpanzees are more closely related than are chimpanzees to orang-utans. Following these smart, elusive and quick moving apes through the forests of Uganda (Kyambura Gorge, Kibale Forest) and Rwanda can be testing of stamina and patience. They are mainly arboreal although you may be favoured with a sighting near to or on the ground. Our best encounter was at Kyambura Gorge where they came down onto the rocks; this was also a comparatively easy trek. Our toughest trek was going across the side of steep hills at Nyungwe in Rwanda to see no more that black blobs hidden fifty feet up in thick foliage. At Kibale Forest, home of many species of primates, the chimps played hide and seek, entertaining us for an hour before stopping on a fruiting tree and providing reasonable viewing.

Western (Lowland) Gorilla: Genus gorilla; Species, Gorilla beringei

Sighting wild lowland gorilla involves flying, driving, boating and trekking into the heart of the Dark Continent, a real adventure to rarely visited places. In the Congo and the Central African Republic you can track habituated gorillas with good probability of a sighting; in Gabon and the Congo, the other method is a daily trek from base camp to a Wildlife Conservation Society viewing platform. You remain on the platform for the day observing whatever turns up in the Bai, a natural clearing in the forest frequented by an assortment of animals in search of minerals, water and luscious grazing. The more days you remain the higher your probability becomes of seeing gorillas in a Bai; spend four, preferably, five nights if you can. As luck would have it, a gorilla family visited Langoue Bai the day before we got there; however we were favoured with a couple of engrossing hours with a solitary male, as well as with lots of elephant, forest buffalo and sitatunga.

Mountain Gorilla: Genus Gorilla; Species, Gorilla gorilla

If you remain free of human viruses that can be passed on to the gorillas, and you can make the trek at five to six thousand feet, you are virtually certain to sit with the mountain gorilla. This entails several hours walking up hill at a gentle pace, ducking and weaving between shrubs and bamboos, and stopping periodically to rest. The gorillas make nests each night and the trackers know where to find them next day. Usually mountain gorillas do not move more than a kilometre a day from their nesting place, which is the point you set out for on your morning start. We have had good meetings with the gorilla in the Bwindi Forest in Uganda and even better ones with their neighbours on the slopes of the Virungas in Rwanda where most of the treks are, arguably, less arduous than in the Bwindi. With luck you meet up with your quarry whilst they are having their mid-day siesta. Sitting near their feet waiting for them to awaken is a special privilege. Usually the youngsters are the most lively, engaging in play whilst juveniles of both sexes and mature females get on with grooming one another. The silverback, family leader, is never too far away, often making a salad lunch in his hand of various leaves of the forest.

Borneo Orang-utan: Genus Pongo; Species, Pongo pygmaeus

The challenge looking for orang-utan by the rivers and in the forests of Malaysia and Indonesia is coping with the heat and humidity, easier by boat than on land. Fortunately in Sabah, you are never too far away from your lodge, a shower and a change of clothes, and the outings are typically only for two to three hours at a time. Despite impressions you may have formed from seeing orang-utan on the ground in films, rescue centres and zoos, these forest ‘people’ spend their entire lives in trees. The mature males only come to ground occasionally to mate; otherwise these largely solitary creatures are to be found aloft. This means a lot of craning of necks and peering up to see shapes outlined against the sky. The best sightings are achieved in fruiting trees like figs and durian, the exotic, ‘stinky’ fruit of the region. Fortunately orang-utans are relatively lazy compared to chimps; they can get up late from their nests, forage for fruit, return to the nest for a nap or nestle in the boughs of trees. So a good way of improving the probability of viewing them is to get your guide to start in the morning where the orang-utan nested the night before; not as certain a method as with lowland gorilla but more probable than searching at random.

There is nothing to match the awe and humility you feel when visiting with a family of mountain gorillas; at least not until you fall under the spell of their lowland cousins. Then again how do you compare the impish cleverness of the chimpanzee with the beguiling features of the orang-utan, each face different, distinct and, goodness me, almost human….impossible comparisons. My personal favourite is…….the one I am with at the time.
Alan Wood went to Africa to track gorilla with www.worldprimatesafaris.com