Mountain Gorilla families in Uganda

Uganda Mountain gorillas along with their Gorilla families in Uganda  are the most popular primates in Uganda, it’s a tourist Hot spot that everyone who comes to the country must see, Uganda’s Mountain gorillas have been habituated for safe visits living in two ecosystems in the western part of Uganda( Bwindi impenetrable national park and Mgahinga National park) the angelic country hosts Half of the world’s remaining gorilla species, while the remaining half can be found within the great Albertine volcanic region in Volcanoes national park in Rwanda and Virunga national park in the democratic republic of Congo. The Bwindi impenetrable national park is divided into four sectors Nkuringo, Buhoma, Rushaga, and Ruhija, each of these boasts gorilla families living within the sectors. The Mgahinga national park has one gorilla family for trekking.

Mountain Gorillas are known to live high altitude Zones they are characterized by their social behavior living in groups of up to 20 members led by a male called a Silverback. Gorillas love to nest every day for purposes of avoiding parasites and insects in their previous nests, they are known to be herbivorous in nature feeding on plants, roots, fruits, and mushrooms however there are cases when these have been sighted feeding on insects like termites and small animals, the baby gorillas are in the care of their mothers up to the age of 2 years, a typical adult gorilla weighs between 300-400 pounds.  Gorilla families in Uganda live within the mentioned ecosystems and sectors of Bwindi impenetrable national park, let us get to know about each of the sectors and their attributed gorilla families, Mountain Gorilla families in Uganda.

Buhoma Sector is situated north of Bwindi impenetrable national park, it is where the whole Gorilla trekking experience originated, from the very first family of Mubare to be tracked in 1993, this created a genesis of gorilla trekking in Uganda, Buhoma has got five gorilla families which can easily be seen on a gorilla trekking experience, these include the Mubare Gorilla family, Rushegura Gorilla family, Habiyanja gorilla family, Katwe gorilla family, and the Muyambi Gorilla family, these give the best experience in the gorilla trekking and habituation exercise, Buhoma is the most popular of the other sectors to do gorilla trekking. Besides gorillas the, area has many trails to do several activities including guided nature walks and birding.

Ruhija Gorilla Families, the sector is beautifully placed east of the national conservation area, the sector is home to 3 fully habituated gorilla families, Ruhija is a unique part of the forest, it has a rich biodiversity where other wild animals like the forest elephants, antelopes live together in harmony with the Mountain gorillas, it is a common research center due to the uniqueness of species in the area, Ruhija is the only place of the Albertine to find the African green broadbill. Ruhija is among the most accessed points of Bwindi it can be from Buhoma or Kabale, Gorilla families of the sector include the Bitukura group, Kyaguliro, and the oruzogu gorilla families, one of the gorilla families have been set aside purposely for the research and the habituation process.

Rushaga sector is tucked along the southern corner of Bwindi impenetrable national park, Rushaga has quite a number of attractions right from the mountain gorillas to waterfalls like the Bayenda Falls which can be encountered on a guided nature walk in the park. This part of Bwindi is magical at the park headquarters you will have clear views of the misty forest, extending to the other country of Rwanda, it is quite chilly in Rushaga, the sector is the best place in Uganda to have a gorilla habituation experience, the gorilla groups or Families in Rushaga include the Nshonji group, Mishaya group, Busingye group, Musunguzi group, Kahungye group, Bikinji group, Bweeza gorilla family, and the Rwiigi Gorilla family, Mountain Gorilla families in Uganda.

Nkuringo sectis or one of the four parts in Bwindi impenetrable national park was established in 2004 right after the Buhoma sector, this sector is also most sought of because of its interesting gorilla families, these include the Christmas gorilla family, Bushaho gorilla group, Nkuringo gorilla family and the Posho gorilla family which is still under the habituation process, the park part presents an opportunity to do other park activities including guided nature walks, nature views of the serene environment, the Batwa cultural experience.

Mgahinga national park hosts only one Gorilla family, the Nyakagezi Gorilla family, the family members are mobile with a low guarantee that they will actually be seen, as they are known to cross to the neighboring bordering countries, Mgahinga national park is a continuation of the great Virunga volcanic mountain region.  Other things to do here include the Batwa experience, guided nature walks, and Golden monkey tracking.

Gorilla families in Uganda are habituated to the gorilla trekking and gorilla habituation process (which allows visitors to spend more time studying the gorilla and their day-to-day life encounters), it is important to book permits in time as they are limited slots for the Number of members per gorilla family per sector per day. Accommodation is available in all sectors where to track mountain gorillas, however, it is advisable to book a facility that is in the location of your permit. This makes the whole process easy and accessible to the Park headquarters in time.