& the Nkuringo Gorillas

Rafiki

© Clinton Woods Photography

UGANDA ADVENTURE

In early 2013, I had the chance to observe two separate mountain gorilla groups in the wild Virungas of southwestern Uganda.

East Africa

We hiked for miles through the thick jungle of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park to visit the Kahungye group, consisting of around 8 members led by a single silverback, as well as the Nkuringo group, comprised of around 15 members dominated by a husky alpha-male, several females caring for young, and a few other silverbacks that occasionally try to assert their leadership.

Mountain gorillas have never been successfully bred in captivity and at present only number around 1000 in the wild.

The only area mountain gorillas occupy today is a fragmented network of thick jungle in the Virungas of Rwanda, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, an area that is still threatened with conflict.

CLOSE TIES 

Gorillas share 98% DNA with humans and are among our closest evolutionary cousins.

Great Apes are extremely social animals, and clearly show emotion both towards their own kind, as well as towards the human visitors who come to be in their presence.

Staring into their eyes, I observed firsthand the depth of these creatures.

A silverback named Rafiki recently took over leadership of the Nkuringo group after the disappearance of his brother, Safari.

Rafiki     

Rafiki means "friend" in Swahili.

We sat with the gorillas for about an hour each day, watching them interact, eat, and play.

Some climbed trees...

Others stayed on the ground.

Nkuringo Village

Though not without controversy, gorilla tourism has played an important part in bringing gorilla numbers back from the brink of extinction while aiding the local economy.

Tragedy

In a major setback to the progress made over the past several years, Rafiki, silverback leader of the Nkuringo Group, was killed in June 2020 at the hands of poachers who had encountered, and likely startled, the gorilla while on an illegal hunt.

The death of a leading silverback can often lead to instability causing the group to disband and raising risks to survival.

UWA Rangers arrested four people over the death of Rafiki and are monitoring the Nkuringo Gorilla Group to ensure the family is protected.

Rafiki's killer, Felix Byamukama, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 11 years in prison. Rafiki was around 25 years old when he died.

Justice in the Jungle

Fortunately, recent reports from Nkuringo Walking Safari suggest the group has stabailized under the leadership of a dominant blackback known as Rwamutwe, meaning "big head" in Swahili.

In another sign of hope amid the challenging times of coronavirus, two new babies were recently born into two separate habituated groups in Bwindi. Perhaps they'll grow up to be as popular as Rafiki was, and maybe even lead their own group one day.

© Clinton Woods Photography

Hope