The forest fence continues - with thanks to IPPL and the Arcus Foundation!

With thanks to the International Primate Protection League and the Arcus Foundation we were able to start the new faze of our ‘Chimpanzee Habitat for Conservation and Education’ yesterday! The money they have granted us was used to purchase a part of the metallic overhang and will be used for some general running costs for the centre and also a military education program! Once again we are so grateful for the support of IPPL and the Arcus foundation! And we are so excited to be continuing with the forest enclosure!

Walikale - new arrival!

Yesterday afternoon, the 1^st of July, the Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature (ICCN) arrived at our door with a baby chimpanzee which had been confiscated. Walikale is a little male around 4-5 months of age and was given his name from the village where he was confiscated. He is in fairly good physical condition and we assume came out of the forest not more than a few days ago. He was wrapped in a plastic bag and clung to it desperately, we assume had been in it for some time and that it was the only security he had known for the last few days. He also had a cord tied around his waist on arrival.

Sadly, the arrival of another infant tells us that the killing of chimpanzees and other wildlife in Congo is still very prevalent and the trade in infant chimpanzees continues. Usually, a chimpanzee group is attacked and the adults which are killed are sold as bushmeat and the infants sold as pets.

Walikale is eating a little banana so far and drinking a little milk. Heis very young; he is not even able to walk yet and will require a great deal of love and care.

Roots and Shoots Lwiro - World Ocean Day!

On the 12^th of June our Roots & Shoots club of Lwiro met again to celebrate World Ocean Day. As we are nowhere near an ocean here, but are very close to Lake Kivu we taught the children the differences between lakes and oceans. We also talked about why the lake is so important to the children, their families and the animals who live there and what we can do to keep the lake healthy for everyone to enjoy!

Turning a corner....

We are literally turning another corner – well covering another with the wire mesh! I know all the pictures we post of the fence may seem the same, but every new roll of mesh we unwrap feels like another giant hurdle we are jumping! Still have a few stages to go, but we feel like we are finally seeing this project turn into the “Chimpanzee Habitat” that we can imagine!

Chimpanzee Habitat for Conservation and Education continues!

The fence construction is continuing, with the mesh up on over half the fence today! We are moving forward, which is a relief, but still have some way to go. If you would like to contribute to the fence appeal, 100% of the funds donated through the blog go directly to the fence construction! Watch this space for more updates!

Welcome Bernard!

Bernard arrived on the 8^th of May at the CRPL. She was the pet of Congolese military; however the commanding officer surrendered her into the care of the Congolese conservation authority (ICCN). He then accompanied the ICCN to the sanctuary to see where the young Owl-faced monkey would live. Bernard was in good health on arrival and will spend one month in quarantine before we integrate her into a group with other monkeys.

We now have a total of 64 monkeys! Space is very limited, but we give them the best food and health care we possibly can. We are working toward improvements in housing for all animals of the CRPL!

THANK YOU IPPL!

Once again we would like to thank the International Primate Protection League for their continued support of the CRPL! They have awarded us yet more funds to continue our work here with the 111 primates in our care! What an amazing organization!

Thank you IPPL and supporters of IPPL, we are so grateful.

Fence construction continues!

With thanks to our amazing sponsors the next faze in construction on the 'Chimpanzee Habitat for Conservation and Education' began yesterday!

Lwiro Roots and Shoots continues!

Roots and Shoots Lwiro now has a new instructor – Roger! Roger did an amazing job at teaching the children about World Forest Day and the importance of forests in the lives of people and animals! And most importantly, what the children can do to save their own forests in Congo!

The children had such a fantastic time they couldn’t stay in their seats! Roger also used story telling and songs in his lesson. The children were keen to share their own stories and songs as well.

Amazing support from amazing organizations - THANK YOU!

The CRPL is so happy to announce that since January 2011 we have been awarded four grants.

The International Primate Protection League US– a fantastic supporter of the CRPL - awarded us one of their end of year grants. While the International Primate Protection League UK also awarded us a grant. These funds will contribute to the running costs of the CRPL and the continued construction of the fences. We thank IPPL for their ongoing support.

Chester Zoo awarded a grant for the completion of a parasitological study working within the CRPL and Kahuzi-Biega National Park.
And Columbus Zoo have awarded the CRPL a grant to cover the costs of the electric and solar power system for the ‘Chimpanzee Habitat for Conservation and Education’.

The assistance of these organizations is so appreciated. We can not thank you enough.