 |
|
|
|
|
|
Gombe Stream is Tanzanias smallest
park (52 sq km) and is home of the world famous chimp
reserve. It is located 16 km north of Kigoma on the shore
of Lake Tanganyika in western Tanzania. There are plenty
of baboons around, but the focal point of Gombe are the
chimps. It’s reconciling their interests with those
of tourism that has occupied the founder of the reserve,
Jane Goodall, for 25 years. Here, in the 1960’s,
Goodall carried out major research conclusively the unique
relationship between man and chimpanzee, as we share 95%
of our genes with them (some people may share more than
others!) and they have similar hearing, smells and other
senses to humans.
Gombe Stream National Park is a fragile strip of chimpanzee
habitat straddling the steep slopes and river valleys
that hem in the sandy northern shore of Lake Tanganyika.
Its chimpanzees – habituated to human visitors –
were made famous by the pioneering work of Jane Goodall,
who in 1960 founded a behavioural research program that
now stands as the longest-running study of its kind in
the world. The matriarch Fifi, the last surviving member
of the original community, only three-years old when Goodall
first set foot in Gombe, is still regularly seen by visitors.
|
|
| Best
time to visit Gombe Stream National Park |
 |
|
|
|
Dry Season: May to October
is dry and the best time for forest walks, although
the light rains of October and November are also
fine. Mid-December to February are dry and hot.
Rainy Season: the long rains are from March to May
when insects come to life and the forest becomes
very slippery. The chimps don't roam as far in the
wet season (February-June, November
|
 |
|
|
-mid December) so may be easier
to find; better picture opportunities in the dry (July-October
and late December). Finding the chimps is largely a matter
of luck as they can theoretically be anywhere from the
top of the 8000 ft mountains to the lakeshore at 2500
ft. However, the trackers at the camp know the animals
well and are nearly always in touch with their movements
from day to day.
The length of walk can vary enormously
- they are sometimes literally at the back of the camp
and other days they are nowhere to be seen - but on average
you should expect to walk for at least 2-3 hours. If you
fail to spot a wild chimp, don't get too disheartened,
the landscape and flora and fauna is fantastic in and
around the reserve. From Jane’s Peak you can see
a stunning view of the entire park and Kakombe Waterfall.
Getting to Gombe Stream National Park is via the western
Tanzania town of Kigoma. Kigoma is connected to Dar and
Arusha by scheduled flights, to Dar and Mwanza by a slow
rail service, to Dar, Mwanza, and Mbeya by rough dirt
roads, and to Mpulugu in Zambia by a weekly ferry. From
Kigoma, local lake-taxis take up to three hours to reach
Gombe, or motorboats can be chartered, taking less than
one hour. For accommodation, there is 1 new luxury tented
lodge, as well a self-catering hostel, guest house and
campsites on the lakeshore.
|
|
| Gombe Stream
Wildlife & Birdlife Attractions |
 |
 |
|
Chimps are king
of the treetops, but the canopy also harbours red
colobus monkeys, blue monkeys, red-tailed monkeys
and olive baboons. Many of the chimpanzees are habituated
to humans as a result of ongoing research since the
1960's. Respect and understanding are key to rewarding
chimp encounters. On the lakeshore pied wagtails and
sandpipers |
dash in and out of the lapping waves
and butterflies rise in confetti-like clouds. Palm nut vultures
glide over the lakeshore. Young baboons play in the water,
sometimes even submerging themselves, which is rarely seen
outside this park. Elephants, buffaloes and leopards also
inhabit this park. The most visible of Gombe’s other
mammals are also primates. A troop of beachcomber olive
baboons, under study since the 1960s, is exceptionally habituated,
while red-tailed and red colobus monkeys - the latter regularly
hunted by chimps – stick to the forest canopy.
You need to pay $100 a day just to come (entrance fee),
whether you see the chimps or not, so be prepared; you may
be disappointed. Some of the chimpanzees in the main study
community are actually quite aggressive to strangers, so
it can be dangerous. Care has to be taken not to pass on
diseases to the chimps, as humans and chimps immunity systems
are so similar that we can catch their diseases and they
ours. |
|
| Chimpanzee
Facts and Conservation Efforts |
|
|
 |
Chimpanzees share about
98% of their genes with humans, and no scientific expertise
is required to distinguish between the individual repertoires
of pants, hoots and screams that define the celebrities,
the powerbrokers, and the supporting characters. Perhaps
you will see a flicker of understanding when you look into
a chimp's eyes, assessing you in return - a look of apparent
recognition across the narrowest of species barriers.
Chimpanzees eat plants and meat, they are omnivores, eating
forest fruits and ants, termites and small animals, and
occasionally other smaller monkeys. They hang around in
groups of around 50, and smaller sub gangs of 7or 8 chimps.
They use a complex language of sounds, the calls of the
chimps are always in the air of the Gombe reserve, so you
can be in the presence of the great monkey even if you don’t
have a chance to see a wild chimp up close.
Habituating the chimps - getting them used to coping with
people - involves living in the middle of dense jungle,
often alone, and under trying conditions. Despite all this,
the biggest threat to the chimps still comes from humans.
In places like Saudi Arabia and Dubai it’s the thing
to have a little collection of exotic animals and you must
have a chimp. And some chimps get smuggled through into
east Europe or Mexico or Cuba or South America for medical
research or for entertainment. The Goodall institute offer
rewards to anyone who gives evidence of people who are abusing
chimps. Because of rapid habitat destruction, the chimpanzee
is an endangered species. Only around 100,000 - 200,000
exist in the wild. |
|
| Further
Information and Booking a Visit |
|
|
|
| Memorable visits to
the Gombe Stream National Park are featured within various
Tanzania safari itineraries featured in this site. We have
a wide range of carefully designed tours and safaris to
Gombe Stream National Park Tanzania that will reveal to
you the true meaning of an African wildlife safari to Southern
Tanzania. Your safari consultant will always be at your
assistance should you need a tailor-made holiday to this
location. For more information regarding this attraction,
please DO NOT hesitate to contact
us. |
|
| |
| RELATED
LINKS |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
