A FRAGILE SUCCESS

Mountain gorilla numbers are increasing– an eco-tourism success story. But Covid-19 is presenting new challenges to the conservation of this great ape.

- KUSH PATEL

WINSTON CHURCHILL ONCE described Uganda as “the Pearl of Africa”. His words come to mind as I take in my surroundings. I'm in the lush, green foothills of Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, whose dark interior shelters the country's most famous wild residents: mountain gorillas.

My guide, Peace, is a powerhouse of enthusiasm and knowledge. “You are very lucky. Today you will meet the Rushegura group,” she exclaims. “There are two big boys: the leader, we shall call Obama. And his second-in-command, we shall call Biden.” A chuckle ripples through our group of eight tourists. The silverback’s name is actually Kabukojo, but, spurred on by our amusement, Peace continues. “Obama has been busy making babies. There are now 21 family members.”

The Rushegura group is one of 17 gorilla families that are habituated to tourists. Bwindi also has a similar number of unhabituated gorilla families.

Encounters like these have taken place for years, but today is different. We had sanitised our hands, donned face masks and had our temperatures taken. We walked through the forest in single file spaced 2m apart and we weren’t to get within 10m of the gorillas. Even in this remote wilderness, Covid-19 is making its presence felt – it’s a potential disaster for a gorilla population that has only recently recovered from a state of near-extinction.