LWC News 2005

Other Information in 2005

Jackson:

Jackson “no nose” was having a fairly uneventful start to the new year. That all ended the day that he was found sick in the Pro-Wildlife Nursery Enclosure. The veterinary team immediately examined Jackson and noticed that he had a fever
and, most worrying of all, a stiff and painful neck. This can be a sign of meningitis,
a deadly infection, viral or bacterial, that affects the meninges that cover the spine and the brain. Jackson was immediately isolated in the quarantine facility and placed on high doses of specific antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs and was nursed through the night. After 24 hours of the treatment starting a small improvement in the movement of his neck was noticed and he began eating small mouthfuls of paw paw when offered by the quarantine keeper, Killi. Jackson continued to improve and eventually made a full recovery. In mid-April, 2 weeks after he fell sick, Jackson returned to his enclosure. The veterinary and quarantine staff worked very hard and must feel very proud to have nursed Jackson through what could have been a fatal illness.

Chella:

Chella continues to amuse and frustrate everyone in equal measures. His playful posturing antics are a sight to behold, yet his bullying of Arno and Twigs mean that the keeping staff always has to watch him. He is not too rough however, he simply likes to tease.

At his last health check in August 2004 he weighed 110kg, about 60kg short of what he will eventually weigh when he becomes a full grown silver back. To enable him to get enough nutrition through this very demanding growth period Chella has to receive two special feeds per day. These feeds allow the keepers to give Chella the high
level of protein and energy that a growing male gorilla of 11 years old requires. Everyone who sees him agrees that he is looking fabulous.

Pitchou:

Pitchou has become the hill destroyer! The new gorilla enclosure has, in the very centre, a hill under the soil of which lies the rubble of the old night house. Back in December bafia grass was planted on the hill but it will take six months or so and
one rainy season before the soil has been bound by the plants and the gorillas can have free access to the hill. Therefore a fence has been erected around the hill to keep the gorillas away. Not Pitchou however. She loves the hill and once in a while Pitchou will find a way to get on to the hill…be it leaping from the mango tree or
from one of the climbing structures. Once on the hill she rolls and rolls in the long grass which she then proceeds to pull up. Eventually the keepers always manage
to get her to leave the hill, but she is sure to find another way in. Soon however
the fence will be taken down and she will have the hill to play on every day.

Bergkamp:

Bergkamp is a small chimpanzee with a big attitude. So much so that he bosses many of the larger chimpanzees around in the Pro-Wildlife Nursery Enclosure. With his little white tufty beard he is quite easy to spot, and with his raucous screeches he is certainly easy to hear. Bergkamp is still a juvenile chimpanzee but when he grows
up he is certain to be one of the leaders of the group.

Sad News at our gorilla section: Anthal

On 7th July 2005 we lost Anthal. Anthal was approximately 11 years old when she died. She died after 8 days of acute illness. Post mortem analysis was conducted and samples were sent to the USA in order to help diagnose the cause of her death and we are still awaiting the final results. The news of Anthal’s death came as a shock for all of us here at the Limbe Wildlife Centre as well as for all our supporters and we would like to take this opportunity to thank our supporters for the empathy they have expressed after the news came out.

Supporters and Donors:

The last quarter of 2005 has seen some very generous support given to the LWC. Such support is essential to the LWC’s continued work and professional development. The most noticeable thing about the LWC, according to the many visitors who regularly return over the years, is that the project continually develops and
improves. The fact that the management is able to implement such improvements
is because of the kind and sustained support that the friends of the LWC give.
Below is a list of some of the support that we have received in the last quarter of 2005:

BORN FREE FOUNDATION continued funding for the construction of the Born Free Chimpanzee Enclosure
PRO-WILDLIFE 3,000 Euro for the development of a new Preuss’ guenon enclosure
IPPL $1,000US used to pay for enclosure improvement and enrichment programs
APENHEUL ZOO 1400 Euro for the printing of 20,000 colour information leaflets that are handed out to every visiting group and for the primary school program
HOUSTON ZOO $3000 to fund the education outreach program
GREAT APE FILM INITIATIVE A £1,000 digital projector and numerous conservation films on DVD
CHESTER ZOO and PASA An autoclave oven for sterilising surgical equipment
CHESTER ZOO Diagnostic equipment for faecal analysis
ANNA RANDALL £1,554 raised from her sponsored head shave
ANNA COE 150 Euro

Finally a special thank you also must go to Mrs JULIE LANGFORD who lives in Wales
in the UK. Julie is a website designer and, for the past year, has been working tirelessly as a volunteer for the LWC redesigning the website and providing
emergency computer advice. Julie has a full time job and has a family to raise, yet whenever there has been a problem she has been available for advice and help.
Julie also wrote a poem about the bush meat trade that is displayed on the Pro-Wildlife Nursery Chimpanzee Enclosure notice board and she also wrote the play ‘Fruitless Seeds’ which is due to be performed at the end of the year by the Nature’s Club students.

A Final Word from the Project Manager

The past few months have been extremely varied for the LWC. The successes of
the improving level of professional animal and veterinary care, the PASA vet conference, the keeper exchange program, and the hosting of our international visitors are high points that we are very proud of. However, with the worst rains in living memory came very difficult working conditions for the staff, and stressful living conditions for the animals. In addition, the rate at which primates have arrived in
the past 18 months is over one and a half per month and consequently the quarantine facility and all the main enclosures are full. This poses a big problem for the management of the LWC: Where can all of these new animals be placed, and what about those that are sure to arrive in the near future? The new chimp
enclosure will help to ease the situation for the chimps, but this is only a short term solution. Unless the illegal trade in bushmeat and pets begins to slow down, which is very unlikely in the near future, the LWC will face a crisis of space. Whatever the long term solutions to this crisis are, and a field site may be one, the LWC, like
many other sanctuaries across Central and West Africa, faces a very difficult question: What can we do with the continued stream of incoming orphaned endangered primates? This is a question that needs to be answered very soon. However we have come this far through dedication, hard work and the support
from our faithful sponsors, and together we will face the difficulty of the coming years.

Thank you from all the staff and the animals of the LWC, for your support, without which the LWC would not be the place it is today.

Felix Lankester
Project Manager
The Limbe Wildlife Centre

WELCOME
Other News 2005





		Other Information in 2005 Jackson: Jackson “no nose” was having a fairly uneventful start to the new year. That all ended the day that he was found sick in the Pro-Wildlife Nursery Enclosure. The veterinary team immediately examined Jackson and noticed that he had a fever and, most worrying of all, a stiff and painful neck. This can be a sign of meningitis, a deadly infection, viral or bacterial, that affects the meninges that cover the spine and the brain. Jackson was immediately isolated in the quarantine facility and placed on high doses of specific antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs and was nursed through the night. After 24 hours of the treatment starting a small improvement in the movement of his neck was noticed and he began eating small mouthfuls of paw paw when offered by the quarantine keeper, Killi. Jackson continued to improve and eventually made a full recovery. In mid-April, 2 weeks after he fell sick, Jackson returned to his enclosure. The veterinary and quarantine staff worked very hard and must feel very proud to have nursed Jackson through what could have been a fatal illness. Chella: Chella continues to amuse and frustrate everyone in equal measures. His playful posturing antics are a sight to behold, yet his bullying of Arno and Twigs mean that the keeping staff always has to watch him. He is not too rough however, he simply likes to tease. At his last health check in August 2004 he weighed 110kg, about 60kg short of what he will eventually weigh when he becomes a full grown silver back. To enable him to get enough nutrition through this very demanding growth period Chella has to receive two special feeds per day. These feeds allow the keepers to give Chella the high level of protein and energy that a growing male gorilla of 11 years old requires. Everyone who sees him agrees that he is looking fabulous. Pitchou: Pitchou has become the hill destroyer! The new gorilla enclosure has, in the very centre, a hill under the soil of which lies the rubble of the old night house. Back in December bafia grass was planted on the hill but it will take six months or so and one rainy season before the soil has been bound by the plants and the gorillas can have free access to the hill. Therefore a fence has been erected around the hill to keep the gorillas away. Not Pitchou however. She loves the hill and once in a while Pitchou will find a way to get on to the hill…be it leaping from the mango tree or from one of the climbing structures. Once on the hill she rolls and rolls in the long grass which she then proceeds to pull up. Eventually the keepers always manage to get her to leave the hill, but she is sure to find another way in. Soon however the fence will be taken down and she will have the hill to play on every day. Bergkamp: Bergkamp is a small chimpanzee with a big attitude. So much so that he bosses many of the larger chimpanzees around in the Pro-Wildlife Nursery Enclosure. With his little white tufty beard he is quite easy to spot, and with his raucous screeches he is certainly easy to hear. Bergkamp is still a juvenile chimpanzee but when he grows up he is certain to be one of the leaders of the group. Sad News at our gorilla section: On 7th July 2005 we lost Anthal. Anthal was approximately 11 years old when she died. She died after 8 days of acute illness. Post mortem analysis was conducted and samples were sent to the USA in order to help diagnose the cause of her death and we are still awaiting the final results. The news of Anthal’s death came as a shock for all of us here at the Limbe Wildlife Centre as well as for all our supporters and we would like to take this opportunity to thank our supporters for the empathy they have expressed after the news came out. Supporters and Donors: The last quarter of 2005 has seen some very generous support given to the LWC. Such support is essential to the LWC’s continued work and professional development. The most noticeable thing about the LWC, according to the many visitors who regularly return over the years, is that the project continually develops and improves. The fact that the management is able to implement such improvements is because of the kind and sustained support that the friends of the LWC give. Below is a list of some of the support that we have received in the last quarter of 2005: BORN FREE FOUNDATION continued funding for the construction of the Born Free Chimpanzee Enclosure PRO-WILDLIFE 3,000 Euro for the development of a new Preuss’ guenon enclosure IPPL $1,000US used to pay for enclosure improvement and enrichment programs APENHEUL ZOO 1400 Euro for the printing of 20,000 colour information leaflets that are handed out to every visiting group and for the primary school program HOUSTON ZOO $3000 to fund the education outreach program GREAT APE FILM INITIATIVE A £1,000 digital projector and numerous conservation films on DVD CHESTER ZOO and PASA An autoclave oven for sterilising surgical equipment CHESTER ZOO Diagnostic equipment for faecal analysis ANNA RANDALL £1,554 raised from her sponsored head shave ANNA COE 150 Euro Finally a special thank you also must go to Mrs JULIE LANGFORD who lives in Wales in the UK. Julie is a website designer and, for the past year, has been working tirelessly as a volunteer for the LWC redesigning the website and providing emergency computer advice. Julie has a full time job and has a family to raise, yet whenever there has been a problem she has been available for advice and help. Julie also wrote a poem about the bush meat trade that is displayed on the Pro-Wildlife Nursery Chimpanzee Enclosure notice board and she also wrote the play ‘Fruitless Seeds’ which is due to be performed at the end of the year by the Nature’s Club students. A Final Word from the Project Manager The past few months have been extremely varied for the LWC. The successes of the improving level of professional animal and veterinary care, the PASA vet conference, the keeper exchange program, and the hosting of our international visitors are high points that we are very proud of. However, with the worst rains in living memory came very difficult working conditions for the staff, and stressful living conditions for the animals. In addition, the rate at which primates have arrived in the past 18 months is over one and a half per month and consequently the quarantine facility and all the main enclosures are full. This poses a big problem for the management of the LWC: Where can all of these new animals be placed, and what about those that are sure to arrive in the near future? The new chimp enclosure will help to ease the situation for the chimps, but this is only a short term solution. Unless the illegal trade in bushmeat and pets begins to slow down, which is very unlikely in the near future, the LWC will face a crisis of space. Whatever the long term solutions to this crisis are, and a field site may be one, the LWC, like many other sanctuaries across Central and West Africa, faces a very difficult question: What can we do with the continued stream of incoming orphaned endangered primates? This is a question that needs to be answered very soon. However we have come this far through dedication, hard work and the support from our faithful sponsors, and together we will face the difficulty of the coming years. Thank you from all the staff and the animals of the LWC, for your support, without which the LWC would not be the place it is today. Felix Lankester Project Manager The Limbe Wildlife Centre