3/22/2002:
walked through the Wildlife Center and Botanic Gardens today. both interesting. the wildlife center even more so b/c i've never seen it. or all the primates. up close. in context...
the one larger than the cages and electric fences they were in and behind, that is. in the context of their native range, at least. and i live there/here.
we ate at the hotspot. chilled at the beach. talked about religion. marriage. books. partners. stuff. interesting past several days with leah and sandy.
Midnight's Children, by Salman Rushdie (the book leah's reading and highly recommends)
IMAGE: a baby chimpanzee at the wildlife center in limbe... the younger chimps are kept in areas a little less fenced off than more mature chimps.
ReplyDeletei should note that most (if not all) of the animals at the wildlife center are rescues... taken from or given up by private "owners" or establishments like hotels.
i believe there were attempts to reintegrate and/or release the gorillas or chimps back into the wild, transitioning them through a protected reserve farther north first.
anyone have any more information or links about this effort? please share.
i don't know the details, but you are correct that the primates were rescues and there were efforts to reintroduce them into the wild. not sure how successful they were though as many of them had been in captivity most of their lives.
ReplyDeleteon a side note, when in limbe, i used to sit in front of the younger chimp enclosure for hours on end, watching, observing...had never watched chimps for that long and was amazed at the personalities that came through. remember specifically one moment when a caretaker was in the enclosure cleaning. one of the chimps snuck up behind him and stole a pair of pliers from his back pocket as he was bent over. when the caretaker turned around, the chimp put the pliers behind his back and stared off into the distance as if he didn't know what was going on...really funny. anyways, it was a great place to sit, watch, and ponder our existence.
groz
great story! mine aren't nearly as cute.. i remember the older chimps would throw rocks at visitors... not to mention more lewd behavior on the part of at least one of the older males.
ReplyDeletepeace :)
mohamad