Mgahinga Mountain Gorillas Are Back from Rwanda

GOOD news for Uganda’s tourism industry. The Ugandan mountain gorillas that had moved to the Rwandan side of the Virunga Ranges have returned to Mgahinga National Park.

Seven of the eleven animals that left at the end of March are now back. Four females stayed on the other side, having reportedly gotten ‘married’ to male gorillas of Rwanda.
“The gorillas were seen on July 7,” said Gadi Mugiri, the chief warden of Mgahinga and Bwindi parks.

“We are happy to have them around in the peak tourism season. They will surely boost our tourism industry as more people have booked for tracking.”

The latest census put the mountain gorillas which are only found in Uganda, DR Congo and Rwanda, at 800.

Of those, 340 are in Bwindi, up from 326 two years ago. One was born only one-and-a-half weeks ago. The remaining 460 roam between the three countries.

Conservationists attribute the gorilla population growth in Uganda to awareness programmes for the people surrounding the park. As a result, 39 poachers surrendered to the Bwindi authorities last week and handed over their hunting equipment, including 29 spears, 40 wire snares and two pulling ropes.

Proceeds from the national parks are shared between the Uganda Wildlife Authority and the local communities for development projects.

From July 1 this year, the costs of tourist permits for gorilla tracking went up. Foreigners are now paying $500, up from $375, foreign residents and tourists from East Africa pay $475 (up from $355), while Ugandans now pay sh150,000 instead of sh100,000.

Gorilla tourism started in the early 1990s and contributes up to 70% of the revenues of the Uganda Wildlife Authority, part of which is used to fund parks that do not make as much money.

Fred