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Explanation: Welcome
to "Paradise for Bonobos" ... which is the English translation of
the name of this place, Lola
ya Bonobo (in the local language of Lingala). We are at a major
conservation center for this threatened primate, an hour or so south of
Kinshasa, the capitol city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). 
Lola Ya Bonobo provides 74 acres (30 hectares) of
undisturbed forest for more than 50 bonobos.
The sanctuary was founded in 1994 by Claudine Andre
and primarily provides for public education, as well as
a natural environment for bonobo family groups.
The entrance to the preserve is across a small but turbid
river, as we enter into a mixed forest of bamboo and other vegetation.
Bonobos are part of our Great Ape family (yes, we belong to the same family),
and are confined to
central DRC, where they are separated from chimpanzees by the Congo River.
Conservation
of bonobos is the purpose of Lola Ya Bonobo, as well as of other groups
such as the Bonobo Conservation Initiative,
the Bonobo & Congo Biodiversity
Initiative, and World Wildlife Fund's Adopt
a Bonobo program.
The preserve includes a series of pens that can be used to
isolate individual bonobos. Note the runway on the left
that leads from the fenced open habitat (off-camera).
This young bonobo
is happy to receive
a nice bunch of fresh bananas.
He is not in a cage, but rather
part way down the runway chute
shown in the photo above.
I found the bonobos to be inquisitive at our presence,
and protective of their family groups.
One young male tossed dirt at me if I strayed
too close to the fence line, keeping
his young siblings behind him.
Here is the main fence line that is more for keeping
us out than them in. With 74 acres of dense, native forest to
inhabit, this troop is well protected with room to roam.
A typical view of a bonobo in the dense
understory vegetation. They will surely spot you
well before you see them.
The patriarch of the family -- immensely strong.
Bonobos differ from chimpanzees by having a pink muzzle
and dark face, and long hair on the head with
a 1970s-style part down the middle.
Here you can see how the runways are set up
to help move the bonobos between the open forest section and the pens ...
while other primates discuss the situation.
Bonobos can be as arboreal as they are
terrestrial, which serves them well
in the seasonally-flooded forests of the Congo.
They build nests mostly in trees,
anywhere from about 16-160 ft (5-50 m) high.
Education sign at the kiosk in the preserve,
urging a cessation of poaching, which is a major threat to the species.
More photos and educational posters at the kiosk.
The poster on the right is urging to stop cutting and burning
native forest habitat of the species.
Like other primates of central Africa,
bonobos are shot and sold in the
city as "bushmeat."
The poster above includes this
restaurant menu that boasts
native crocodile, tortoise, wild hog,
elephant, buffalo, ... and
singe makaka, monkey.
The fence is electrified with warning signs ... again,
mostly for keeping out humans (including potential poachers).
In dire need of continued conservation, bonobos
continue to face exploitation and habitat loss, with
major population declines
in recent decades.
May Lola Ya Bonobo continue its success
with public education for conservation of this
close human relative.
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