| What primates will you
see in Uganda safaris? by Clint Jhonson
Every now and then, people
must take a vacation in order to separate from the busy working life and
enjoy some leisure time. For adventurous people, there is nothing like
undertaking Uganda safaris to witness some of our closest relatives - in
the evolution chain - in action. Many historians believe that human kind
started and evolved in East Africa. Because of that, it is not surprising
that Uganda, a destination in this part of Africa, is home to a very high
number of great primates.
 Primates
are very similar to humans, sharing with them flexible arms and legs, skilled
fingers and relatively big brains. Primates include many species of apes,
monkeys and lemurs. The closest living relative to humans is the chimpanzee.
From the low number of mountain gorillas still alive around the world,
you can see about half of them when undertaking Uganda safaris.
Uganda has a significant
popularity, apart from other countries in East Africa, as an attractive
destination for people who want to undertake gorilla safaris. The climate
in this country is moist and the forests are rich and dense, enabling it
to become a home to these species. The number of mammals that live here
exceeds 300, 20 of which are primates. They are both diurnal and nocturnal.
You can observe all of them when you go on gorilla safaris, even the nocturnal
species, because there are tours set up for nighttime.
The threat of destruction
that the primate inhabited forests are under is very high. This is due
to the large number of species that live in tropical forests, which makes
it harder for primates to survive. If you want to include Uganda safaris
in your vacation options, you will have the chance to see great apes, chimpanzees,
mountain gorillas and some species of monkeys.
The rarest primate you can
see is the mountain gorilla. This is the largest of all primates. The chimpanzee
is smaller and shares 98% of human DNA. They are very intelligent, understand,
and peak sign language. Western Uganda is where most of these creatures
live. The species of monkeys found in Uganda are colobus, guenons, baboons,
patas and mangabeys. Some guenon species have a grey coat and live all
over the country, apart from those that live in the forest. Patas can be
distinguished by their reddish brown coat and live in the northern parts
of Uganda.
You can identify other species,
like baboons, due to their size and long canine teeth. They are easily
adaptable, which makes them the most widespread primates in Africa. The
river woodlands and the forest strata are home to the black and white colobus
monkey. There are also some nocturnal species of primates. Among them are
the bushbaby and the potto, which tourists can hardly ever see. Because
they are nocturnal, they sleep during the day and perform their activities
during the night. Some Uganda safaris include guided night walks to the
places these species live.
Due to the increased number
of primates and the threats that they are under, a lot of wildlife parks
and forest reserves have been setup. The intention of all these actions
is the increase of the chances of continued existence for these animals.
In addition, we are looking to help travel operators to organize gorilla
safaris for tourists to enjoy an experience with the great primates. Some
of these parks are the Mgahinga National Park, Kibale National Park, Murchison
Falls National Park and the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. Other sanctuaries
for these primates include Kuniyo Pabidi forest and Ngamba Island chimpanzee
Sanctuary on Lake Victoria. Uganda gorilla safaris may include each of
these destinations. |
