| The Gorillas |
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THE GORILLAS A silverback is an adult male gorilla, typically more than 12 years of age and named for the distinctive patch of silver hair on his back. A silverback gorilla has large canine teeth that come with maturity. Black backs are sexually mature males of up to 11 years of age.Silverbacks are the strong, dominant troop leaders. Each typically leads a troop (group ranges from 5 to 30) and is in the center of the troop's attention, making all the decisions, mediating conflicts, determining the movements of the group, leading the others to feeding sites and taking responsibility for the safety and well-being of the troop. Younger males called blackbacks may serve as backup protection. Males will slowly begin to leave their original troop when they are about 11 years old, traveling alone or with a group of other males for 2–5 years before being able to attract females to form a new group and start breeding. While infant gorillas normally stay with their mother for 3–4 years, silverbacks will care for weaned young orphans, though never to the extent of carrying the little gorillas. If challenged by a younger or even by an outsider male, a silverback will scream, beat his chest, break branches, bare his teeth, and then charge forward. Sometimes a younger male in the group can take over leadership from an old male. If the leader is killed by disease, accident, fighting or poachers, the group will split up, as the animals disperse to look for a new protective male. Very occasionally, a group might be taken over in its entirety by another male. There is a strong risk that the new male may kill the infants of the dead silverback. GORILLA TRACKING Gorilla tracking is a very captivating activity; it involves walking in the wilderness in search of these great apes. It can be a challenging activity, therefore ensure physical fitness. Eight people are permitted per group per day and a total of twenty four (24) people are taken in Bwindi, while eight (8) people are allowed for Mgahinga on a daily basis. So far, we have five groups for viewing. There are four groups in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, (Mubare, Habinyanja, Rushegura, and Nkuringo) and one (Nyakagezi) in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park. Gorilla Permits Gorilla Tracking (Age Limit - 15 years & above) Rates include, guide fee, park entrance fees for the day and community levy. Rates apply to Bwindi impenetrable National Park and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park
Foreign Non-Residents - $500 per day Foreign Residents - $ 475 per day East Africa – UGX 250,000/= per dayUWA will retain the following percentages upon cancellations; 0 - 8 days to tracking date - no refund Reschedules of Permit Reservations Reschedules of Permit reservations are not permitted, except if it is more than 91 days to tracking date and is within (7) seven days of rescheduled date. This will attract a reschedule fee of 20%. Any other charges of the date will be considered as a cancellation and a re-booking. A cancellation policy will therefore apply and re-booking a new date at the full cost of a permit. Book your gorilla permit with us, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it now! Browse through our Uganda Safaris for programs with gorilla tracking. 2009 is the Year of the Gorilla The YoG strives for the following; · Encourage strategic approaches to gorilla conservation that are practical, easily manageable and accessible to many people. · Create awareness among people of ecosystem services (including carbon sequestration and storage) and the intrinsic value of flora and fauna. · Provide income opportunities alternative to poaching, logging and mining through capacity building, e.g. by training forest workers and making them realize the importance of sustainable approaches for their own livelihoods. · Educate the wider public on gorillas and the threats they face · Educate on the potential of ecotourism and carbon finance. · Encourage cooperation between zoo-based and field-based conservation bodies as well as wildlife rangers and forest managers to improve species preservation. · Improve the monitoring of protected areas by bolstering technical capacities, e.g. use of camera traps and remote sensing equipment. · Improve the capacity of government wildlife agencies for setting up anti-poaching campaigns by providing information and equipment as well as training. · Promote cultural attitudes and traditions that are conducive to the conservation of gorillas and other great apes, e.g. taboos on hunting them and sustainable approaches to resource use. · Support rangers in their activities. · Promote the concept that sustainable development must be compatible with gorilla survival across the species range, even outside of protected areas.
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