The first ever Chimpanzee Naming Ceremony at Fig Tree Camp in Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda, took place on the 18th July 2018. During the Chimpanzee Naming Ceremony, four baby chimpanzees were named.
The Volcanoes Safaris Partnership Trust (VSPT) presented the Fig Tree staff with four pairs of binoculars, acquired the previous year, to assist them in their continued monitoring of the chimpanzees.
The dramatically beautiful Kyambura Gorge is home to a single, isolated, community of twenty seven chimpanzees.
Research conducted by the VSPT Coordinator, Nicole Simmons (between 2006-2009) as part of a PhD study on the ranging patterns and feeding ecology of the chimps, revealed that the population suffered a substantial decline and became isolated between 1995 – 2006. A Peace Corps census conducted in 1995 reported twenty seven chimpanzees in Kyambura Gorge; however, by the time Nicole’s research began in 2006, the numbers had dropped to just fifteen chimpanzee individuals. It is therefore very heartening to share the news of not one, but four, baby chimpanzees, and a great cause for celebration.