Category Archives: Chimpanzee
A new home for the Tchimps
OK, because I can’t resist, here’s Lemba learning to paint: Tchimpounga Sanctuary is set atop a modest hilltop at the southern tip of the Tchimpounga Nature Reserve, which encompasses 525 square kilometres of marsh, savannah and emerging rainforest. While this … More
To Hold a Chimpanzee
Yesterday, after a luxurious 12-hour stop-over in Paris, I arrived in the Republic of Congo. Stepping off the plane, I was greeted by that familiar scent of the tropics, a sour mélange of wood-smoke, peat-smoke and gasoline that never fails … More
Packing for the Congo
Well, I leave in less than two days, and I’m still pondering what to bring the chimps of Tchimpounga. The Tchimpounga Sanctuary in Congo-Brazzaville is operated by the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI) and is the largest chimp sanctuary on the … More
My Time with the Chimps: Pepper
In the early years, Gloria invited some of the lab technicians who used to work with the chimpanzees to visit Fauna. Although these visits were ostensibly for the good of the chimpanzees—some of them had built genuine friendships with the techs—Gloria had an ulterior motive for them. More
My Time with the Chimps: Tom
Tom arrived at the Fauna sanctuary in 1997, with a very serious injury on his foot. Just before he’d been scheduled to leave the lab, he’d got into a vicious fight with Billy Jo, during which his foot had been … More
