Chimpanzees are ranked to be the number one primate liked by most of travelers to Uganda when you put the shy endangered Mountain Gorillas aside. Chimpanzees are herbivorous primates which feed on young bamboo shoot and stem, tree leaves, fruits like mangoes, oranges, jack fruits and more, they are black and brownish in color with its fore limb longer than the lower limb. These primates are ranked to be the most closet to human being features in that they even sometimes repeat statements made by human beings while in the Jungle.
Kibale Forest National Park
This Park is located in the Western part of Uganda bordering Queen Elizabeth National Park in the South, Rwenzori Mountains National Park in the West; it’s characterized with tropical rain forest, savannah grasslands and swampy areas. Therefore, on your Ugandan tour can be combined and visit all these parks and you can better reach Kibale Forest National Park by use of Kampala – Mityana – Mubende- Fort Portal highway which is 358 kms from Kampala and when you reach Kibale Forest National Park you will be welcomed with its ever green cover vegetation and after experiencing the chimpanzee trekking or habituation depending on your choice visit the other parks mentioned above for hiking and wildlife safari.
This park is mostly known for the great chimpanzees although it even habits other wildlife primates and species which include Black and White Colobus Monkeys, Red tailed Monkeys, Vervet, Blue Monkeys, Leopards, Lions, Bush babies, baboons and different bird species including the rare shoe bill.
Different bird species in Kibale are mostly sighted while on a walk in Bigodi wetland mostly in the morning or evening time. Chimpanzee tracking and Chimpanzee habituation experience plus bird watching are the most prominent activities done in Kibale Forest National Park.
Chimpanzee Tracking and Habituation experience
Chimpanzee tracking involves starting a tracking journey from the starting point following the established routes or trails into the jungle in search of these great primates very excited to see them feeding, playing with young ones, laughing, swinging on the tree branches and taking photos of these primates for memories, on this walk you are assigned a park ranger to lead you through the jungle and its always advised to maintain your voice at low tone while in the jungle because these primates tend to be tricky in that when they discover presence of human beings near their location they tend to hide away and if you are not lucky you may not see them, on the tracking experience after discovering their location you are allowed to stay in their presence for only one hour and vacate the place but for the habituation experience you are allowed to stay with these primates in the Jungle for four hours or a full day if it is your interest.
While in the Jungle for your tracking or habituation experience you will have high chances of sighting other different Wildlife primates and species like Black and White Colobus monkeys, Vervets, Blue monkeys, baboons, red tailed monkeys, leopards, chameleon, Lizards, owls, fox, hyenas, insects like butter flies, tsetse flies, Reptiles like Snakes, Pythons, and different bird species.
Chimpanzee tracking and Habituation fees
Chimpanzee tracking and Chimpanzee habituation experience in Kibale Forest National Park costs $150 USD and $220 USD person respectively, usually this money is paid on arrival and then issued with a permit for the session, you can either book for a morning or afternoon session.
