IGCP News Flash: New Count of Mountain Gorillas and Chimpanzees in Bwindi – Sarambwe Ecosystem Launched Today!
Blog | 6/05/25
A new count of Mountain gorillas and the inaugural count of Chimpanzees in Bwindi – Sarambwe ecosystem was officially launched today 6th May 2025. The launch was marked in two ways; one, a flag off/commissioning of the census teams to the field by the Executive Director of Uganda Wildlife Authority, Dr. James Musinguzi and two by a press conference conducted in the Ruhija sector of Bwindi Impenetrable Park.
Flagging off Six teams (of about 60 people) comprising of staff from the 11 participating institutions this morning, Dr. James Musingunzi said “Bwindi is one of the parks that host 50% of the sub population of the Endangered Mountain gorillas. Bwindi also hosts an unknown number of chimpanzees. This census is a rare opportunity and showcases the fact that all 3 species; Humans, chimps and mountain gorillas can live in harmony”.
The census teams are going to be systematically moving on foot through Bwindi, looking for signs of mountain gorillas, recording mountain gorilla nest sites and collecting fecal samples to be used for genetic analyses.
At the press conference participating partners appended signatures to the announcement as a joint effort to ensure a successful mountain gorilla and inaugural chimpanzee census in Bwindi-Sarambwe ecosystem.
IGCP in collaboration with the Greater Virunga Transboundary Collaboration developed and disseminated a press release with the various media houses (both local, national and international) at the press conference.
For details about the new census – check out the press release at https://igcp.org/content/uploads/2025/05/Bwindi-Sarambwe-Census-2025_PressRelease.pdf
The launch of the census was preceded by training of the census teams in various aspects including the use of hand-held electronic devices, map and compass use, data entry and how to conduct the survey, planning the daily survey routes and ensuring thorough coverage of the entire ecosystem, and, a field visit of the media to observe, learn and document the census process as it unfolds in the forest.
To view photos from the census training check out this link: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1pvsD-hY1On6k4S-fBQEjoVYLFq4T2mFY?usp=drive_link
The 2025 Bwindi-Sarambwe census is led by IGCP (a coalition of Conservation International, Fauna & Flora and WWF) and is conducted by the Protected Area Authorities in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (Uganda Wildlife Authority and l’Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature) under the transboundary framework of the Greater Virunga Transboundary Collaboration.
Other institutions supporting and participating in the census include Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology (MPI), The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund (DFGF), Institute of Tropical Forest Conservation (ITFC), Gorilla Doctors/Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project (MGVP), Conservation Through Public Health (CTPH), Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), WWF Uganda Country Office, Bwindi Mgahinga Conservation Trust (BMCT), and Primate Expertise (PEx).
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