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Monthly Report
December 2020
Limbe Wildlife Centre: December 2020
Published in January 2021 Limbe Wildlife Centre, P.O. Box 878, Limbe, Republic of Cameroon
Limbe Wildlife Centre is a collaborative effort between the Pandrillus Foundation and the Republic of Cameroon, Ministry of Forestry and Wildlife, MINFOF Pandrillus Foundation is a non-profit making NGO specialized in the protection, rehabilitation and reintroduction of primates, as well as management and sustainable financing of conservation projects in Africa Ministry of Forestry and Wildlife is in charge of implementing the national forest policy for ensuring sustainable management and conservation of wildlife and biodiversity over the national territory as enacted by forestry law No. 01/94 of 20 January which regulates all forestry, wildlife and fisheries activities
peggy@limbewildlife.org limbewildlifecentre
+237 698877002 limbewildlife
ALL OUR REPORTS ARE AVAILABLE
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limbewildlife.org limbewildlife
Monthly Report
December 2020
Accreditations & Awards
In December 2018, the Limbe Wildlife Centre has had its accreditation with the Pan African Sanctuary Alliance (PASA) renewed for another five years. PASA is the largest association of wildlife centres and sanctuaries in Africa, founded by the Limbe Wildlife Centre, along with 6 other primate sanctuaries. Today, PASA includes 23 organizations in 13 countries which demonstrate exceptional commitment and the highest standards of animal welfare and conservation practices, to securing a future for Africa’s primates and their habitat.
In April 2018, the Limbe Wildlife Centre was voted Best Volunteer Abroad Project and chosen to feature in the Tutorful’s Wildlife Conservation editorial along with other prestigious organisations making a notable difference in wildlife conservation worldwide. The LWC gives people the chance to volunteer and assist experienced caregivers with the daily caregiving activities, offering the opportunity for volunteers to the experience of making a meaningful contribution to primate conservation (and all the satisfaction this provides).
In August 2019, the Limbe Wildlife Centre received a 2019 Clark R. Bavin Wildlife Law Enforcement Award at the Conference of the Parties of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in Geneva, Switzerland, in recognition of the remarkable efforts the LWC has made to help combat wildlife crime.
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Monthly Report
December 2020
Content
ACCREDITATIONS & AWARDS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY | PROJECT MANAGER OUR PRIORITY FINANCIAL NEEDS SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2020 HIGHLIGHTS ACHIEVEMENTS SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2020 & OBJECTIVES NOVEMBER 2020 1. Pandrillus-GoC Partnership & Public Relations 2. Population management & Animal welfare 3. Wildlife rescue, rehabilitation and release programme 4. Infrastructures and development| Material & Equipment 5. Community Conservation, Environmental education & Ecotourism 6. Wildlife conservation research & Health monitoring 7. Capacity building, staff empowerment & Mentorship 8. Communication & Visibility 9. Revenues generated
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3 5 7 8 9 11 12 16 19 24 29 30 31 32
Monthly Report
December 2020
Foreword
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY | PROJECT MANAGER The Last Dance Dear Friends and Supporters, 2020 has passed. Happy New Year 2021! This year was physically, psychologically and emotionally intense. It has been challenging, to say the least. This unique year will have left its mark on most of us. This being said, by being mindful of ourselves and others, and maintaining our motivation to fulfill our cause, we can be hopeful of a positive and happy 2021. We have been pushed to an unprecedented level of individual and collective anxiety and depression, at times, even frustration and anger. The strains of this year necessitate an equally unprecedented level of self-care. We all must make the individual effort to restore ourselves, align our mind and body, and keep expressing our love for people, nature and ourselves. We must approach each day with an open-minded attitude, willing to learn new things and challenge our ideas. Even when we feel we lack the strength, we must continue to make
every effort for our cause. We must forgive ourselves for the small mistakes that we’re all inevitably going to make. Finally, we must make time for ourselves, and to ensure that we allow ourselves time to laugh and smile. Take a break from your phone and the news. Instead, read a book; play or listen to music and dance; play a game or make sport; simply appreciate art and nature. By taking these simple steps, we can rest each night and start each new day with renewed energy and motivation. Taking stock from this most unusual of years, these constitute our New Year’s resolutions for 2021. A lot can be learned from The Last Dance, the incredible documentary about legendary basketball player Michael Jordan. Jordan not only excelled in his sport but placed it at the forefront of culture and had an unprecedented level of influence. From this documentary, one key aspect of his personality shines through as the reason he was able to achieve this: MJ focused on the present. Though he had learned
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Monthly Report
December 2020
from the past, he did not let it hold him back. He had no fear of the future and instead made each moment as good as it possibly could be. The results of this were undeniable – at the end of his Chicago Bulls career, he and his team remained at the top of the game, winning the NBA title for a record 6th time. We don’t all have to be Michael Jordan, but we can learn from this attitude and put it into practice in our daily lives.
- We kick-started a major project for 2021, dividing the gorilla enclosure. We have almost completed phase 1: renovation of the night den (p. 19-21);
Though it may be a stretch to compare the NBA playoffs to our challenges here at Limbe, it is fair to say that 2020 was a fierce opponent. However, we are extremely proud of the achievements of this last month in particular, and we will gladly take it as our trophy. It repays our months of effort to ensure sufficient funds, manage the centre day-to-day, develop our vision, start new projects and increase our visibility.
- We successfully released the 3rd and 4th flock of African grey parrots (p. 16-18);
Here is a brief preview, a list of our achievements: - Pandrillus launched the second education #ProtectWildlife campaign in partnership with the PSMNR and the RDFOF. This program highlights the biodiversity of the protected areas of the South West region and showcases the work done in Limbe to save the African grey parrot from extinction (p.11, 23-24 & 26); - We integrated the male chimp Jacob to Ngambe and Mayos in the special care and rehabilitation section for chimps (p. 12-13); - We started the integration process of 2 adult males (Papa and Nanga) into the Mainland group. This will be one of the biggest challenges for 2021, requiring a high level of behavioral expertise from our team;
- We organised a Christmas Nature Club for the children of the staff (p. 24-25); - We displayed the 4 billboards highlighting the original creative work by artist Toh Bright as part of the Art4Nature programme (p. 24-25, 27-28);
- We awarded the top-performing 3 workers for the last two quarters of 2020 (p. 30). There will always be months that are particularly busy, but particularly productive, and this was December 2020. Just like at the end of a hard-fought and tiring game, we now need to be proud, look back and realize our accomplishments, take some rest, and get prepared for next year. This is Our Last Dance. The Holiday Season came just at the right time! We hope you will enjoy this report, keep following and supporting us in 2021, and do your best to be happy! We wish to thank all of you who placed your trust in our programmes. We rely more than ever on donations and every coin gives us a little more fuel to keep moving forward. And that is what we need: keep our sight on our goal, keep taking the next step. You expect us to do so, and we expect it of ourselves. We will keep fighting together for Nature. It is not a straight line and time has its own way. But in the end, we can make a difference. Thank you, as ever, for your unfailing support.
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Our priority financial needs 1. Help us protect our rescued animals during COVID-19! We must boost the immunity of 15 critically endangered gorillas, 43 endangered chimps, and 75 endangered Drills and upgrade biosecurity measures vs. COVID-19. 30000
COVID-19 updates in Cameroon The number of confirmed cases exceeds 26,000, with a marked increase of the number of new cases detected throughout December.
Confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Cameroon (source: MINSANTE)
25000 20000 15000 10000
DONATE NOW TO PROTECT THEM FROM COVID-19!
5000 0 Mar-20
May-20
Jul-20
Sep-20
Nov-20
2. Help us free 112 parrots back to the wild in 2021! We are leading the National rehabilitation and release programme for the endangered African grey parrot. 125 birds were released in 2020. 112 must be released in 2021!
RELEASE PARROTS NOW! 3. Splitting the large gorilla enclosure Maintenance was sponsored!! Now, to enable our gorillas to enjoy an enriched outdoor every day, take part in this amazing project and help us divide and re-enrich the largest enclosure with climbing structures and shelter to rest, hide and play. Goal: â‚Ź25,000
RE-ENRICH THE GORILLAS ENCLOSURE HERE! Contact info@limbewildlife.org to know more
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December 2020
Monthly Report
December 2020 Highlights
□ Launched the new #ProtectWildlife campaign in collaboration with the Regional Delegation of the Ministry of Forestry and Wildlife and the Programme for Sustainable Management of Natural Resources: highlighting the South West region biodiversity and the conservation efforts made to save the African grey parrots from extinction
□ Completed the introduction of adult chimpanzee Jacob with Ngambe and Mayos in the Special care and Rehabilitation Section □ Released of the 3rd and 4th flock in the Limbe Botanical Garden, reaching a total of 125 individuals released in 2020 □ Christmas event: Organised a special day of activities for the children of the staff of the Limbe Wildlife Centre □ Art4Nature campaign: Installed and unveiled in Limbe the 4 original artworks made by Toh Bright □ Designated the 3 best workers of the Limbe Wildlife Centre for the 3rd and 4th Quarters 2020 □ Fundraising: Successfully run the December To Remember challenge to sponsor the splitting of the outdoors gorilla enclosure □ Media coverage: LWC was on national TV journal on CRTV -8-
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Monthly Report
The collapse of Limbe Zoological Garden’s Island protective wall poses a significant risk to the health and safety of staff and animals. The integrity of the remaining infrastructure is now a primary concern and urgent action needs to be taken by the Ministry of Forestry and Wildlife
Section of the protective wall that collapsed in front of the savannah-dwelling guenon enclosure built in 2019 on Limbe Zoological Garden.
The Island houses 231 animals who are now at risk. From left to the right: endangered chimpanzee, Tantalus monkey and the endangered African grey parrot
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LWC’S SPECIAL PROJECT
Art 4 Nature “Art for Nature is an outstanding initiative, which involves communicating and educating the public interactively, especially with our children. Art is the medium for this. This innovative project aims to trigger the right emotions through every bit of the artistry involved. Art, I believe, must reconnect people with their environment, nature, and culture. As a Cameroonian visual artist fascinated by conservation and loving my country, I have engaged in creating art pieces to inspire Cameroonians, Africans and the rest of the world to recognize the unique value of our wildlife, as a core part of our cultural heritage, and realize what we stand to lose if we do not better protect. Through the Art for Nature concept, I intend, with Pandrillus and the Limbe Wildlife Centre, to picture what’s going on, and stimulate an emotional response from people to care, protect and restore nature”
Toh Bright, Visual Artist,
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December 2020
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Achievements December 2020 & Objectives January 2021 1. Pandrillus-GoC Partnership & Public Relations Funders
□ Launched the new #ProtectWildlife education campaign in collaboration with the Regional Delegation of the Ministry of Forestry and Wildlife (RDFOF) and the Programme for Sustainable Management of Natural Resources (PSMNR-SWR), to promote efforts to safeguard the African grey parrot and other emblematic species and resources of the Southwest region (Images 1-2) □ Reviewed the re-opening of the Limbe Wildlife Centre to the public and planned it for February 2021 if conditions are met
Image 1. One of the 10 billboards of the Image 2. One of the 10 billboards new #ProtectWildlife campaign promoting the diversity and richness of the promoting the work done in Limbe to Protected Areas of the Southwest Region. save the endangered African grey parrots from extinction in Cameroon. January 2021 objectives: □ Validate internal rules and regulations (pending) □ Review the proposal of the national strategy to rehabilitate and release the African grey parrots (pending)
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2. Population management & Animal welfare Funders
Ongoing activities □ Maintained frequency and diversity of enrichments in each section
Specific activities □ Special Care and Rehabilitation Section: Completed the introduction of adult chimpanzee Jacob with Ngambe and Mayos (Image 2) □ Chimpanzee: Transferred two adult males, Papa and Nanga, from the Island group to the escape-proof Mainland enclosure (Images 3-6) □ Mona monkey: Water pressure cleaning of Saker’s Mona monkey and Idenau Redeared monkey enclosures and re-enriched with wood shavings (Images 7-8) □ African Rock Python: Re-enriched the enclosure with branches □ Vet cares (December 2020): ◌ Primates: 133 individuals treated; 7 anaesthesia performed; 15 individuals sampled (3 blood samples for haematology analysis, 2 blood samples for biochemistry analysis, 13 faecal samples for coprology analysis, 1 pus swab for microbiology analysis); 2 contraceptions; 0 identification with a microchip; 1 laceration repair; 24 drug therapies: 50% dietary supplements, 38% antibiotics, 13% painkillers and anti-inflammatories; 5 health checks; 0 death (Image 9-11) ◌ African grey parrots: 0 general health checks; 32 health checks before release; 31 transferrals to the soft-release aviary, 0 transferrals to the rehabilitation aviary; 13 individuals received intensive care treatment with 3rd generation antibiotic treatment and special diet; 0 death (Image 12)
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Image 3. Mayos and Jacob first encounter. Although she is almost blind, Mayos remains playful and immediately interacted with her new inmate Jacob.
Image 4. Ngambe grooming Jacob. Ngambe is a socially disabled female but has made tremendous progress over the past month. The integration with Jacob went very well and she quickly engaged in a positive relationship with him.
Image 5. Jacob discovering the structural Image 6. Mayos and Jacob playing enrichment of his new enclosure with chase. Their first day outside together was Ngambe dedicated to joyful playing from morning to night.
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Image 7. Water pressure washing of Image 8. Edogue, adult female Mona Saker’s enclosure: the left side of the wall monkey enjoying his freshly laid wood was cleaned. shavings.
Image 9a&b. The transfer of animals (here Papa and Nanga are moved to the Mainland night dens) is always a good occasion for the vet team to do to a complete health check (blood and faeces sampling, weight‌) to make sure the animals are healthy
Image 10 a&b. Baju, an adult male drill, was injured during a fight with another male. Although impressive, the wound was sutured and he was sent back to his group for healing.
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Image 11. Female gorilla Akiba has been incapacitated due to constipation. Digestion in gorilla is very sensitive and adequate food is essential to keep them healthy. Here, Head animal care staff Jonathan Kang is gently massaging Akiba’s belly to examine her and help her defecate. She voluntarily accepted this intervention thanks to her special bond with him: Jonathan has been raising and taking care of her for the past 20 years!.
Image 12. Complete health check and last treatments of the African grey parrots before transferral to the soft release cage. Everyone has a specific task to minimize the time of the animals on the table and make sure all are fit for the wild.
January 2021 objectives: □ Continue with the ongoing activities □ African grey parrots: Continue to provide special care for the last individuals with difficulties improving their body conditions □ Vet cares: General health checks: African grey parrots (27); Health check before release: African grey parrots (30); Contraception: Drills (3).
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December 2020
Monthly Report
3. Wildlife rescue, rehabilitation and release programme Funders
Arrival & quarantine □ None
Behavioural rehabilitation □ None
Social rehabilitation □ African grey parrot: Continued to maintain the care and enrichment to the 112 African grey parrots in the large aviary □ Drill: Continued integration process of juvenile male Drill Mbigou with adult female Jafita and 3 other females in a satellite cage of the Drill enclosure
Release (ecological & environmental rehabilitation) □ Released the 3rd and 4th flock in the Limbe Botanical Garden, counting for 55 rehabilitated African grey parrots and reaching a total of 125 individuals released in 2020 (Images 13-14)
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Image 13. The first African grey parrot of the 4th flock released in 2020 in the Limbe Botanical Garden flying into freedom after opening the hatch of the soft release aviary.
Image 14. Released parrot feeding on wild plant items in the Limbe Botanical Garden. Most of them were captured at adult age and their capacity to search for food and forage remains intact, hence increasing their chance of survival after release.
January 2021 objectives: â–Ą African Grey Parrots: Continue the rehabilitation process of the rescued individuals and transfer the 5th flock into the soft-release site â–Ą Drill: Continue the social integration of juvenile male Mbigou into the Drill group
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December 2020
Monthly Report
4. Infrastructures and development| Material & Equipment Funders
□ Installed the 2 double-sided billboards for the Art 4 Nature project displaying Toh Bright artwork at Batoke and Mile 4 (Images 15-16) □ Continued the urgent renovation of the Western lowland gorilla night dens: Benito and Batek sections are finished (Images 17-23) □ Enlarged the electric fence around the tree, preventing future escapes in the Chimp Island enclosure (Images 24-25) □ Complete building of a bamboo fence around the enclosure and satellite cages, giving the animals more privacy in the Drill section (Images 26-27) □ Installed an electric fence around the tree in the Special care and rehabilitation Section (Images 28-29)
Image 15. Welding maintenance and Image 16. Installation of billboard before first layer painting. the posters are been displayed, in Batoke
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December 2020
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Image 17. Cutting off bad metal Image 18. Scrubbing out corrosion in the pipe/rod in gorilla Benito section. gorilla section.
Image 19. Replacement pipe/rod in gorilla section.
of
metal Image 20. Welding of new pipe in the gorilla section.
Image 21. Second layer painting in the Image 22. Completion of second layer gorilla section. panting in gorilla Benito section.
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Image 23a&b. Completion of second layer painting in gorilla Batek section.
Image 24. Expansion of metal and Image 25. View of the new enlarged tree concrete foundation around a tree on fence to prevent any chimp escape in the Chimp Island enclosure. the Chimp Island enclosure.
Image 26. Replacement of metal Image 27. Renovation of the bamboo pipe/rod for bamboo screens in front of fence in front of the two-level satellite the upper satellite cage of the Drill cage of the Drill enclosure. enclosure.
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December 2020
Monthly Report
Image 28. Poles are being installed for the Image 29. The electric fence was built tree fencing in the special care and around the tree to prevent Jacob from rehabilitation enclosure. escape before his first day outdoor in the special care and rehabilitation enclosure. January 2021 objectives: â–Ą Continue renovation and start the splitting of the western lowland gorilla enclosure
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December 2020
Monthly Report
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December 2020
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5. Community Conservation, Environmental education & Ecotourism Funders
□ School outreach programme: Continued the 2020-2021 programme: 6 schools, 22 classes and 908 schoolchildren; monthly efforts: 40 men.hours □ Saturday Nature Club: Postponed the 2020-2021 Nature Club □ Christmas event: Organised a special day of activities for the children of the staff of the Limbe Wildlife Centre: Christmas tree decoration, handicraft, song, dance and a lot of fun for the kids and their parents! (Images 30-33) □ Installed and unveiled the 4 original artworks made by Toh Bright in Limbe (Images 34-35) □ Designed and displayed 10 new two-sided billboards highlighting South West region biodiversity and the conservation efforts made in Limbe for saving the African grey parrots from extinction (Images 36-37) □ Community-based Green Economy: 15 ex-hunter members sustainably harvesting wild herbaceous plants: 1,950 kg of Aframomum stems and 330 kg of Costus stems; 28 women members harvesting crop by-product: 777 kg of cassava leaves, 3,356 kg of papaya leaves, 2,273 kg of potato leaves, 312 kg of invasive Trumpet wood shoots, corresponding to 70 trees hand-cut; 874,560 FCFA (€1,335) paid directly to the local community association this month; 10,560,645 FCFA (€16,123) contributed to alleviate local poverty in 2020 □ Organic agriculture to sustain community livelihood, improve soil quality and increase community resilience to climate change: tested the compost for the presence of pathogens of human risk (Images 38-39)
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Image 30. Children participating in the Image 31. …and crafting. Children Christmas event enjoyed drawing… started timidly and then expressed their talents and creative skills!
Image 32. The creations made by the Image 33. Close to 80 staff children children were used to decorate the participated and enjoyed the special Christmas tree at the Limbe Wildlife Centre. event organised for Christmas. They all received a gift from the LWC.
Image 34. EDUCATING AND INSPIRING Image 35. REHABILITATING ENDANGERED CHILDREN, by Toh Bright. Displayed in PRIMATES, by Toh Bright. Dsiplayed at Mile 4 Batoke. entrance “Motor Way”.
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Image 36. Installation of the campaign posters. 125 African Grey parrots were released in 2020 in Limbe. The LWC was thus keen to raise awareness about the importance of this species among the locals.
Image 37. Installed beside the main road, the ten LWC billboards are seen by a large public, broadcasting our conservation message.
Image 38. Akih Emmanuel, our lab technician, is collecting several compost samples to check the compost is free of human pathogens. One goal of compost is to treat our organic waste and value it for farming or tree nursery.
Image 39. The results of the bacteriological and parasitological analysis show that our compost does not present any harmful bacteria or parasites, and hence can be shared with our community partners for farming!
January 2021 objectives: â–Ą Continue with ongoing programs
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6. Wildlife conservation research & Health monitoring Ongoing activities □ Recovery monitoring of the rescued endangered African grey parrots: Continued to collect data during health checks and through direct observation □ Monitoring the soft-release of endangered African grey parrot: Resumed the collection of daily data on the parrot movement and use of the environment □ Establishing Haematological Reference Values for the endangered Drill: Continued to build the dataset of haematological data extracted from 18 years of analysis (2002-2019), corresponding to 199 samples, and including a total of 21 haematological parameters.
Activity achievement □ None
Data analysis □ None January 2021 objectives: □ Continue with the above ongoing activities
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December 2020
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7. Capacity building, staff empowerment & Mentorship â–Ą Designated the 3 best workers of the Limbe Wildlife Centre for Q3 and Q4 (Image 40)
Image 40. The 5 best employees of quarter 3 and 4 of 2020 with the Project manager. Q3 2020
Q4 2020
Killi Matute Stephen, Responsible for the AGP rehabilitation
2nd
1st
Sokoudjou Yvette, Administration assistant
3rd
Johnathan Kang, Head of the gorilla section
3rd
Peggy Motsch, LWC Manager Felix Ngwa, Assistant Construction Manager Vallarine Aforlica, Construction Manager
January 2021 objectives: â–Ą Continue with the above ongoing activities
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December 2020
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8. Communication & Visibility □ Digital communication (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Twitter): December was a very good month for our social media! Across all of our platforms, the number of followers was multiplied by 5.5, and our YouTube channel gained more attention (+99 subscribers). Several videos reached more than 1 million persons, with a record at >4.7 million! □ Fundraising: Successfully run the December to remember challenge to raise $3,750 as matching fund to a generous donation and sponsor part of the budget required to re-enrich and split the gorilla enclosure (see Our Priority Financial Needs) . □ Fundraising: Launched the T-shirt campaign in loving memory of Chimpanzee Ghaa to support the remaining disabled great apes at the Limbe Wildlife Centre; $720 were raised through the sale of 34 T-shirts in loving memory of Ghaa. □ Media coverage: 1 national report made o TV: Le journal télévisé de 20h30, CRTV, 21st of December 2020
January 2021 objectives: □ Continue advocating the missions of the LWC within the Central African Conservation Landscape in Cameroon
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December 2020
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9. Revenues generated â–Ą Entrance fees (December 2020): FCFA 0 (0 visitors; 0% children, 0% Cameroonians) due to the closure of the Limbe Wildlife Centre to visitors
4500 4000 3500 3000 2500 2000 1500 1000 500 0 Dec-19 Jan-20 Feb-20 Mar-20 Apr-20 May-20 Jun-20 Adult Nationals
Children Nationals
Jul-20
Aug-20 Sep-20 Oct-20 Nov-20 Dec-20
Adult Foreigners
Children Foreigners
Figure 1. Visitor statistics December 2019- December 2020 â–Ą
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