GOLDEN MONKEY TRACKING IN UGANDA
Visit the primates living in the shadows of Gorillas
Golden monkeys “Cercopithecus mitis kandti” are part of Uganda’s 20 primate species. But these are little known and less visited despite them living in an interesting environment and being fun to watch. Golden monkeys in Uganda survive in the Mgahinga Gorilla national park. The park is part of the Virunga ranges and these primates are endemic here.
There are an estimated 2000-4000 individuals of golden monkeys only left in the region as of the 2003 survey, and they are classified as endangered. Golden monkeys live in groups of 80-100, despite being many in numbers, live in the shadows of mountain gorillas through the park offers better golden monkey viewing than it does for gorilla viewing.
Just like gorilla tracking at the park, golden monkey tracking starts with a briefing at the park headquarters at 7 am before starting the walk into the forest. The trek takes a couple of hours about 2-4 of marching up and down in the jungle through the different vegetation zones. The bamboo zone is where these primates with red-gold blur fur reside. An hour is allowed to guest to watch and photograph these beautiful creatures. Every bit of golden monkey tracking is as exciting and rewarding as their relatives (mountain gorillas).
Being a golden monkey living with mountain gorillas in Mgahinga Gorilla N.P is not easy because you just won’t get a bigger visitor base. But to grab the attention, the golden monkeys are tarted up with a multi-colored coat of rusty red, orange, black, and some tints of blue and of course some gold to create an amazing appearance.
At Mgahinga, troops of golden monkeys have been habituated for tracking/tourism and there are semi-habituated troops that are available for habituation experiences. The habituation experience is engaged in by those that would want to spend more time with the monkeys. The experiential tour allows visitors to have an insight and a better understanding of the research, conservation, and protection of these species and also the challenges faced by the monkeys and the conservationists.
Golden monkeys are animals so attractive and entertaining to watch. Why would you ignore them? A golden monkey tracking permit is at 60 USD and the habituation experience permit is at 100 USD. You can complete the primate business in Mgahinga NP and combine gorilla tracking with Golden monkey tracking.
Before you go for golden monkey tracking you should know this.
- They (golden monkeys) are so active unlike the gorillas and you will have to move through the forest to keep up with them. It is more like chimpanzee tracking.
- Visitors doing tracking are only allowed one hour with them.
- There is no limit to the number of people that can track the golden monkeys, though not even a handful sees these primates on a daily.
- There is no minimum age to who can track them. So even children can visit them.
Golden monkeys are the next big thing to see at Mgahinga after the mountain gorillas. So you can book your golden monkey tracking Safari to Mgahinga through us. Click here.
