Mfou, Cameroon

Parc National de Mfou, 2019-09-06. The Primates Sanctuary of Mfou, gorillas, chimps, mandrills and more.

Manufactures and sells of bakas, Bantu and Pygmy drums, on the side of the road.

 About fifty kilometers south of Yaounde is the Mefou primate sanctuary. A good track goes through the equatorial forest towards the sanctuary. The last 1,500 m on the small, narrow track, ravaged by deep ruts, which goes to the right after 5 km, are much less comfortable. Fortunately the weather is dry and we are spared the mud. 

The track to the park of Mefou

We arrive at the sanctuary at 11:30 am. The barrier is opened for us and we will park Gandalf in a sort of small parking lot at the edge of a track that goes off to the left.
Guided excursions to the enclosures of the various monkeys are proposed. They last an hour and a half to two hours and cost 7,500 CFA (€ 11.78) per person. I pay Tamara, a Spanish volunteer who works here for a few months and can get by quite a bit in French. I ask her if it would be possible to spend the night here in the motorhome. She hesitates a bit because they are not used to these kinds of requests and normally it should be up to the principal to make the decision. But since she is absent, she makes the decision for her and sees no problem because we are absolutely independent and safe in the motorhome. Rather, tent camping is the problem with the wild animals lurking at night.

At the M’fou primates sanctuary

We put on our pants and long-sleeved shirts because of the mosquitoes and then we presented ourselves at the reception for the departure of the excursion.

Our guide is called Thérèse. She has a bachelor's degree in animal biology from the University of Yaoundé and has participated in several specialization seminars in primatology.
The sanctuary's living base was set up on the site of a village that residents had to abandon to be resettled separately. This is where we find the site's administrative buildings, homes for workers and volunteers, a food preparation unit for animals, two “bars” where it is possible to buy cold drinks, a kitchen, a nursery for baby chimpanzees, a veterinary clinic and other small annex buildings.
We start with the young chimpanzee enclosure. All the monkeys found here, in the various enclosures, are monkeys rescued from the clutches of poachers or confiscated from private homes. The goal is to breed them and get them used to wildlife again so that they can one day be released into the wild. Baby chimpanzees are first bottle-fed by a nurse until the age of 2, they then move on to the nursery where they will continue to be breastfed until the age of 4 before being transferred. in the youth enclosure in front of which we now find ourselves. They stay there until they reach 12 years of age.
Max greets us by throwing mud at us. It's not really nice but he lets us know that we got a little too close to his territory. Chimpanzees are quite aggressive and dangerous animals on the whole. Max owes his name to his “adoptive parents”. It is indeed possible to adopt an animal from 50 USD per year to provide financial assistance to the site. This is because, although it is owned by the Cameroonian government, the site does not receive any subsidy from it. It was created by an Israeli colonel and is managed by an NGO, "Ape Action Africa", and must be financed by donations. The food needs for the animals are very important, it is the most expensive item of management.

Max picks up dirt to throw it at us.

Chimpanzees are the animals that are genetically closest to humans. Their genome is 99.4% identical to ours (this figure differs greatly from one source to another). Thérèse explains to us how they try to thwart the electric fences of their enclosures, they quickly discovered that dry wood does not conduct electricity and they regularly try to cross the fences using large branches of dry wood (never with wet wood). They also know that when the weather is bad the power supply to the fences can fail (I don't think they have mastered the principle of photovoltaics already) and they test the voltage by briefly touching the wires in the hope of being able to pass. without much pain.

Relax! Max!

 

They also have some knowledge of pharmacopoeia, using certain very specific plants in case of illness or disturbance, such as the leaves of this plant whose name I have forgotten for stomach problems. They then use the stems to make mattresses for sleeping. 

The leaves for stomach problems and the stems for making mattresses.

 

We pass through the enclosure of the  white-eyelid mangabey, a small monkey that lives in forest valleys and gallery forests. They have been observed in groups of 14 to 23 individuals with a few males and many females. Each group has a dominant male. They keep their long tails hanging in the air with the tip hanging above their heads. They also have the particularity of storing food in mouth bags to digest it later.

white-eyelid mangabey

Walking through the forest to the mandrill enclosure.

The next enclosure will be that of the mandrills, a species of forest baboons. They are found in the dense equatorial forests of Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and Congo-Brazzaville. They live in groups of around 50 individuals (harems). The life of the group is centered around the dominant male. Its build and vibrant colors give it a sort of monopoly on mating. The other males are separated from the group, they live in the vicinity of the group or in a group composed exclusively of males.

A mandrill

 Agile mangabeys are monkeys that live in the seasonal swamps of tropical forests. They mainly live in trees, especially of course during the rainy season.

 Agile mangabey

Passage in the forest towards the baboons

After a passage in the forest, we find the baboons. They live in groups of 30 to 60 individuals in pastures or near water points. They are also excellent swimmers. Groups are made up of several males and females around the dominant male, a status acquired by fighting.

Baboon

A detour a little more in the heart of the forest allows us to discover a rather rare and threatened tree: the moabi. The moabi can reach 50 to 60 meters in height. It reaches maturity around 90 to 100 years, it only produces fruit every three years. The oil extracted from moabi seeds has cosmetic properties and is also used for cooking. The forest elephants are the main vectors of seed spreading.

Christine facing a moabi.

A majestic tree, the moabi.

Thérèse also shows us some ebony trees, the wood of which we know very well, of course, but which we discover today as trees, a rather harmless tree.

An ebony

We finally arrive at the gorilla enclosure. Males, with silver backs, weigh around 300 kilograms. The one we have in front of us with his three females is impressive. Male or female, they need about 30 kg of food per day! Despite their imposing stature, gorillas are peaceful animals much less aggressive than chimpanzees. But you should not provoke them, for example by fixing them in the eyes or turning your back. Thérèse explains to us that the best attitude to adopt if we had to cross one of them on our way is that of submission, facing the monkey, the back bent and the eyes directed downwards.

Male gorilla with silver back.

We stay a long time to observe them peacefully sitting in the grass in front of us, or would it be rather them who observe us sitting on our tree trunk with our funny little black boxes that we regularly bring to our eyes ….

Facing the gorillas!

The three females stay at some distance from the male. The mother of the newborn "Eto" has a privileged position, the favorite in a way, and it is she who is closest to the male. The oldest is the farthest.

The male.

The male and his three females.

The favorite of the moment, the mother of the youngest child.

On the way back we pass in front of a new enclosure of young chimpanzees.
All that remains is to register for posterity in the guestbook. What I like a little less is the sheet that is handed to us where donors register with the amount of their donation. This is of course optional, but it is difficult to reject this indirect request. Although I understand how much the center needs these donations, I find the method not very elegant, but very Anglo-Saxon! We therefore participate up to 5,000 CFA (€ 7.85).

Christine and the guestbook.

We are not so different!