Chimpanzees In Tanzania : Wildlife Safari Adventures :Tanzania is one of the countries with diverse wildlife. This country is renowned for rewarding wildlife safaris, cultural tours, and beach holidays. If you are intrigued by wildlife diversity, this is the perfect spot. Serengeti National Park and Ngorongoro Conservation Area are the best places for intriguing safaris.
If you want an exceptional safari experience without the crowd, chimpanzee trekking is the one. Tanzania hosts the endangered chimpanzees. Seeing the chimpanzees is one of the most extraordinary experiences to try on your African adventure. But, before you plan your safari, we have prepared facts and all you need to know about the chimpanzees.
What are the chimpanzees?
Chimpanzees are large and powerful primates, but slightly smaller than gorillas. They thrive in Congolese forests and usually but not always prefer mountainous regions. Chimpanzees are predominantly herbivores that eat roots and fruits. These intelligent primates also hunt small animals and sometimes monkeys.
Social structure
Chimpanzees are social animals and prefer to stay in groups of 15 to 150 individuals. The group is ruled by a dominant male that spreads its progeny in the group. The females care for the children, while the males protect the group. Youngsters stay close to their mothers for up to three years after which, they are weaned.
Cognitive skills
Chimpanzees show a high degree of intelligence. They make simple tools for digging roots and hunting. They also have good communication skills, such as signs, gestures, and body language. They also show emotions and self-awareness.
Threats
The IUCN identifies chimpanzees as an endangered animal species. The major threat to the existence of these primates is the loss of habitats. The expansion of human settlements has led to chimpanzees losing their natural habitats.
The conservation efforts have revived the chimpanzee population in Tanzania thanks to NGOs, government, and nature lovers. Two national parks in the Western Circuit of Tanzania were established to preserve the chimpanzees.
Where to see chimpanzees in Tanzania?
Are there chimpanzees in the Serengeti? We normally encounter this question from our clients. You cannot see chimpanzees in Serengeti or any northern circuit destinations. They are available in the western circuit, especially in the Kigoma region. There, you will meet two national parks both situated on the eastern coast of Lake Tanganyika: Gombe Stream National Park and Mahale Mountains National Park.
Gombe Stream National Park
Gombe is 35-square-kilometer big, being the smallest park in Tanzania. With its breathtaking landscapes comprising steep valleys, woodlands, grasslands, and tropical rainforests, Gombe offers amazing scenery.
Jane Goodall, a British primatologist spent a decade in Gombe Stream National Park studying the behavior of wild chimpanzees. She came with academic resources which she documented in her books. Since then, Gombe has been famous for chimpanzee trekking safaris.
Mahale Mountains National Park
Mahale Mountains National Park is home to about 1000 chimpanzees. These primates thrive in mountainous regions of this park.
What is chimpanzee trekking?
Chimpanzees are best explored by trekking rather than game drives which are common for many wildlife safaris. Chimpanzee trekking involves walking in the wilderness following the trails of chimpanzees until you reach their territory. Afterward, you will spend an hour observing their routine and behavior.
The park authorities allow a group of six guests to spend an hour with a group of chimpanzees. There are habituated groups of chimpanzees in Gombe and Mahale.
Before you start the trek, you will be given a short brief about the rules and what to expect from the experience. After the briefing, your guide will lead the way through the marked trails to follow the footsteps of the chimpanzees.
Our guides are experts at finding the territory of chimpanzees. They know the clues to reaching the natural habitats of the chimpanzees. You can also look for clues such as dung, shaking branches, and sounds since they are very vocal.
As you hike, listen to the shaking branches as the blue monkeys jump from one branch to another. Relax, you are very close to the chimpanzee territory since primates stay close to each other.
You will finally meet one of the habituated groups of chimpanzees. Habituation is done to make chimpanzees human-friendly. You now have an hour to spend watching these endangered species. Young chimpanzees are playful, while silverbacks show dominance. You may also enjoy some games since they are very playful.
What if I don’t see a chimpanzee?
This is extremely rare. The chimpanzees scatter through the rainforests and montane forests when food becomes hard to get. It may be tiresome to find their territories since they become migratory when food is scarce. However, it is difficult to miss them as there are chimpanzee trackers that will notify your guide of the current location of chimpanzees.
Best time to visit for chimpanzee trekking
You can trek the chimpanzees all year round. The dry season is always the best. This is from June to October. During this time, the chimpanzees are on the lower slopes of mountains.
You can watch these endangered primates on an unforgettable Tanzania safari with Focus East Africa Safaris. Contact us if you want an exhilarating safari experience in Tanzania, whether in the wild.
