Twycross Zoo's Major Fundraising Programme Results in 25 Bonobos Being Released

By Kim Riley

Atherstone, UK - Lola Ya Bonobo is part of Twycross Zoo’s major fundraising programme BONOBO! and Lola has just carried out a ground breaking release of 25 bonobos back into their natural habitat.

BONOBO! was launched by Twycross Zoo in 2008 to help secure the future of bonobos (our closest living relative) in the wild. To date Twycross Zoo has been able to channel nearly £100,000 to help bonobo conservation.

Lola Ya Bonobo is an important part of BONOBO!, with its rehabilitation of orphans from the pet trade. This release of 25 bonobos is the culmination of 15 years of Lola Ya Bonobo’s work this first-ever release of orphaned bonobos into the forests of Central Africa began on June 14.

The bonobos are now settling into their new 50,000-acre forest home near Basankusu, in the Equateur region, where local communities have agreed to become guardians of the project and to prevent illegal hunting in the forest.

The bonobo (Pan paniscus) is only found in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Bonobos are severely threatened by deforestation and bush meat hunting, and it is believed there are less than 30,000 remaining in the wild.

This release is vitally important to the conservation of this species, as this group will be introduced into an area where bonobos had previously become extinct. Once the bonobos begin to move away from the release site, specially trained eco-guards will monitor their movements and record data.

Lola Ya Bonobo has been carefully preparing the bonobos for release by carrying out a series of health checks, assessments of their physical ability and to ensure they can cope mentally with life in the wild.

Claudine Andre, Founder of Lola Ya Bonobo said, “The release of bonobos back into the wild will be the pinnacle of all we have accomplished. For the last 15 years, we have worked tirelessly on education and conservation – this is the most important step of all.”

Suzanne Boardman, Director of Twycross Zoo said, “We are extremely passionate about the bonobos and primates. We are delighted to be a part of this incredible release programme, this is a triumph for Claudine and a landmark for bonobo conservation.”

The latest news from the field is that the bonobos are settling extremely well into their new home with the help of Claudine and the project staff. To follow their progress log onto www.friendsofbonobos.org/news

To view Twycross Zoo's web page on Zoo and Aquarium Visitor, go to:  http://www.zandavisitor.com/forumtopicdetail-712-Twycross_zoo