Quest: Mountain Gorillas: Discovery Channel

A Visit to Uganda

A new camp for refugees from the D.R.C. in Kisoro, Uganda, Nov. 10, 2007.

I continued my travels in Uganda last week, first on safari with friends, then back to work with gorillas (more about them in a moment).

Early on, in Kisoro, we drove past a refugee camp set up by M.O.N.U.C., the U.N. mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The camp is just off the main road connecting the Virunga Mountains with Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, the only two places in the world where mountain gorillas live. Though the refugees have access to basic health care and vaccinations, any number of diseases could whip through this camp, putting people, as well as the nearby mountain gorillas, at risk.

Our next encounter with M.O.N.U.C. was a good deal less positive. We were in Queen Elizabeth Park on a game drive. Our amazing guide, Francis Kiwanuka, had spotted several lions after hours of searching. The male lion had a swollen muzzle, so of course I was trying to get a better look at him.

Suddenly, two U.N. trucks drove up and parked behind us, engines running. Dozens of people got out and continued talking. The lions moved away and so did we.

A male African lion in Queen Elizabeth Park, Uganda, Nov. 13, 2007.

Only about 100 lions remain in the entire park, a decline in population caused by the poisoning of lions by cattle farmers who prefer to protect their herds in this way rather than wait for compensation for their losses from the Uganda Wildlife Authority (U.W.A.).

Evidently, M.O.N.U.C. staff visit the park weekly during their breaks. Our safari group was disappointed and disheartened by their behavior. I don't think it can be good for these few lions to have people visiting the park who don't observe common safari etiquette, which calls for visitors to turn off their vehicles, stay inside and remain quiet around the animals.

A female leopard in Queen Elizabeth Park, Uganda, Nov. 13, 2007.

Francis quickly put some distance between our truck and the U.N. group. We continued on our game drive, passing a huge herd of elephants, one of many we glimpsed during our three-day safari.

Suddenly, Francis stopped, turned off the engine and pointed upward. A leopard! She too had a minor medical problem — a cloudy right eye with a bit of discharge. She noticed us but then went back to sleep . . . until the U.N. trucks showed up. She was long gone before they all got out and walked around her tree.

Francis Kiwanuka, nature guide and expert driver.

Francis himself was as impressive as the animals we saw on our Ugandan safari. He works for Volcanoes Safaris, a company that manages several eco-lodges in Central Africa. We'd hired him through Terra Incognita Ecotours, a company that donates to M.G.V.P. when guests visit our project in Rwanda.

These tour companies, as personified by Francis, offer proof that people and wildlife can live in balance with mutual respect for one another's boundaries. As for the U.N., maybe the Queen of England can ask them to mind their manners — this week she is due to visit the park named in her honor.

M.G.V.P.'s new field office in Buhoma, Uganda, adjacent to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest.

On my own I traveled next to Buhoma, Uganda, near the boundary of the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. Bwindi is not far from the Virungas, but the drive on winding often muddy mountain roads with a stop at the border crossing from Rwanda takes about eight hours.

M.G.V.P.'s Ugandan field vet, Dr. Benard Ssebide, is based in the Buhoma area and we planned to do a few routine health checks together. Benard also wanted to give me an update on the new M.G.V.P. field vet office, still under construction.

A mother and her infant in the Nkuringo Group, Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, Uganda.

Bwindi is home to half the world's 720 mountain gorillas, though only about a quarter of these have been habituated to people. The percentage is much higher (75 percent) for the gorillas that live in the Virunga Massif of Rwanda, D.R.C. and Uganda.

Most scientists say that the two populations separated about 500 years ago — the result of logging and agriculture. Compared with the Virunga gorillas, Bwindi gorillas live at lower elevations in tree-covered peaks and valleys, eat a greater variety of plants, and have shorter hair.

Dr. Benard Ssebide stands inside M.G.V.P.'s newly constructed Buhoma field office.

To make a cell phone call, Benard must drive to a particular spot on the road where he can get decent reception. His office is wherever he finds a spot to land.

Recently, though, M.G.V.P. has co-funded the construction of a small building. One side houses M.G.V.P.'s new Uganda field office and it's almost ready. The other side was funded by a small business owner who planned to open an Internet cafe. Now we're hearing that this may never happen. So for now, sending email or talking by SKYPE in this area remains a dream.

Buzinza's infant in Bwindi’s Rushegura Group acts fine,
despite multiple small white lesions on the face.

I trekked with Benard and U.W.A. rangers to see Bwindi's Rushegura Group of mountain gorillas. Benard has been monitoring a 10-month-old in the group. It shows no signs of ill health except for multiple whitish-gray, plaque-like lesions on its chin, nostrils and lips. These lesions appear viral — possibly herpes or pox or papilloma (warts) — and have been observed on other infant gorillas. Indeed, during this visit, we noticed another infant, an 8-month-old, with similar facial lesions.

Kyirinvi's infant in Bwindi's Rushegura Group also has some small white lesions on the face.

Since the skin condition doesn't make the infants sick, we have not intervened and thus have been unable to make a precise diagnosis. It's definitely not mange, which has been documented once before in Bwindi. But it does last for weeks. To track this problem, Benard and I took dozens of photographs of the Rushegura Group infants, hoping that one of us would capture a decent image. I learned that it can be very dark in the Bwindi Forest, even on a clear day.

A view of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest from Nkuringo, Uganda.

After visiting the Rushegura Group, our plan was to visit another Buhoma-based family of mountain gorillas: Mabale Group. But the U.W.A. rangers reported that a black back (a young adult male gorilla) in the Nkuringo Group had been coughing. This group lives on the other side of Bwindi near the town of Nkuringo, a 15-kilometer (9-mile) forest walk from Buhoma. Unfortunately, the gorillas were another five kilometers away — too far to walk and do a health check on the same day. We got back in the car, drove five hours, spent the night in Kisoro, and drove another hour-and-a-half the next morning to Nkuringo.

To reach Nkuringo Group, we hiked down into a deep valley. Because of the dense vegetation, I found it difficult to fully observe each individual. But we did succeed in getting a clear view of the coughing black back, Kisoro. He rested most of the time, ate a bit and intermittently sounded a loud, dry cough. We were relieved to find that none of the other gorillas was coughing. Benard will go back to check in a few days. After a challenging hike out of the valley, I left with a new appreciation for the word "impenetrable."

[Uganda, Nov. 17, 2007. Pictures: Lucy Spelman/MGVP]

Gorilla Video Clips

Lucy captured these short video clips with her digital camera during routine health checks on Pablo group, Beetsme group, Shinda group and Group 13.

Grooming Gorillas

Gorilla Health Check

Sunday in Ruhengeri

[Click on the pictures to see larger versions with captions.]

Jacques casually tossed the ball in the air to serve — and smashed it right by me. An ace! That's crazy, I thought, he can't be more than 10 years old. A moment later John-Bosco, at least a year or two younger, slammed a winner past Julie. OK, I felt better. Like me, she's at least 35 years older than these kids.

A tiny boy with a deep voice named Manny kept score. He sounded like a proper umpire. The first few times I heard him call "Fault!" I reflexively looked up for some official sitting in a high chair. As it was, I could hardly see Manny against the glare of the sun; he was standing close to the net post, his head barely above the top of the net. Overall, he did a great job, though I think he lost track a few times.

One game in particular seemed to go on forever. John Bosco and I had won several points in a row when Manny announced "Trente ans" (30-all). I questioned the score; Manny repeated it with authority. Julie laughed, knowing she and Jacques had gained several free points. But no matter, we were having fun — real fun — possibly the most fun I've had since I arrived in Rwanda.

At one point, Jacques suddenly ran off the court and another boy, Darius, skipped in to take his place. Julie welcomed her new partner and we continued. Apparently it was time for the next lesson on the other court. Every 45 minutes or so, the kids switch, taking their turn with Rachid, the local pro.

Each weekend Julie generously pays for kids in her neighborhood to learn tennis. With a dozen kids, the program lasts all morning on both Saturdays and Sundays. Creative and full of energy, Julie has figured out how to make this work. She gives the tennis kids options: they can sit quietly and watch, or flip through a stack of National Geographic magazines.

Sometimes she gives them little drills to practice. The first time I visited, I taught several boys on the sidelines how to juggle. Now that they've learned how to keep score and serve, the kids have begun to play doubles on their own when the second court is free.

Julie moved here from Iowa a year ago. She's a graphic artist who loves inspiring others to create their own art — of any kind. Next week we're starting an art project together: drawing classes for the kids of families who live near the gorilla parks. Gradually we'll introduce information about nature, gorillas and health. Even though most of these kids have never seen a wild gorilla they know about them, but we're not sure what, exactly, they know.

Also, thanks to Julie, I've (re)discovered tennis. Until two months ago I hadn't hit a tennis ball for 20 years or so. Work and a busy life, as well as life's injuries, had wiped the game from my list of activities. But it's not easy to get exercise here in Rwanda, and the clay court is soft and slow, which helps. If the gorillas are healthy and I don't feel too overwhelmed by unfinished paperwork (or too sore from trekking up to find my patients during the week), I show up at the courts for an hour or so most weekends.

Until today, Julie and I had played only a set or two with one or two kids acting as ball boys. When she suggested we play mixed doubles this morning, I raised my eyebrows and asked her if she really thought the kids would be OK with it. "Sure," she said. Julie was right — they jumped at the chance.

I'm not sure how Julie got to know these kids initially, but her dogs made the connection stick. Dogs in Rwanda are guard animals, not pets, kept behind walls or tied up. But Julie's dogs live in her house, eat cooked meals and accompany her on walks. Though they're not always well-behaved, they're quite friendly. Even so, they scare the neighbors.

At Julie's invitation — she wanted to help them get over their fear of the dogs — the neighborhood kids started coming by her house to visit, knocking on her gate from time to time. Soon the kids joined Julie on her dog walks. She learned their names and taught them some English. Now, they take the dogs for leash walks on their own. I think Julie started the tennis lessons as a way to give the children a gift — not money or food, but play.

There's no question that tennis is an escape for these kids. They seem happy and carefree on the court, but I know they live a hard life. Most of the people in Ruhengeri town (something like 40,000) are poor, and there's a lot of pressure on children to grow up quickly. Many drop out of school early because they have no choice. They must find work — usually on their family's farm.

Land itself is the most precious commodity here. Because the volcanic soil is rich, even a small patch of dirt is enough to grow a surprising number of potatoes. People own meters of land, not acres.

Walking back from the courts today, I kept thinking about something my friend Perry, a wildlife biologist in North Carolina, said to me years ago when we were working together on a river otter project. "You know, Lucy," he remarked in his soft Southern drawl, "the problem is everyone thinks they own the land. If no one owned the land, there'd be plenty of space for everyone, including them otters." The same holds true for this place — only here it's people and the gorillas.

[Rwanda, May 5, 2007. Pictures: Lucy Spelman/MGVP]