Tess: A New Beginning, Day 1 at Lwiro

After being a little worried the chimps would not convert easily to living in a less ideal environment, so far it seems not to have phased them too much. The introduction of the first chimpanzee to the group provided much entertainment for them. Irangi, a 3 year old male chimp (who had his leg broken by a trap in the forest) who looks a cross between an orang-utan, Beetlejuice, a gremlin and the monkey things who have wheels for hands in Return to Oz, was a little scared at first, but being a feisty little chap, he made a match for Shege and Etaito and settled right in. Afternoon came and more was to happen, as two more chimps made the number up to eight, Kenya (f) and Kamituga (m) two 3 year olds. The appearance was of an already well established group, as the eight played roughly and contently the moment the guys went in. It seemed the novelty of new chimpanzees had worn off the Goma chimps after the first one!
Putting the guys to bed took a little longer with the eight chimps rather than five, but with our star Balume, patient as always, he waited until they had settled down to slumber before leaving. A great day all round.