The biodiverse rainforest is in Nyungwe Forest National Park. One of the few significant forests still standing in central Africa is the Complete Forest. It is situated in the capital city of Kigali’s southern district. There are bamboo, wetlands, rainforests, grasslands, and lowlands in the vegetation and scenery. The 1,020 sq km Nyungwe Forest serves as a major water catchment area for Rwanda.
Over 1000 different varieties of flora and animals can be found in the woodlands, which are home to a wide range of wildlife. The dominant inhabitants of the forests are chimpanzees, while roughly 13 other primates make Nyungwe Forest their native habitat. Here, there are approximately 87 different mammal species, 300 bird species, and untamed plants.
In 2014, the Nyungwe Forest Park was created. The Rwanda Development Board (RDB) is in charge of its administration. One of Rwanda’s top three tourism destinations is Nyungwe Forest. The forest is mostly known for its breathtaking canopy treks and chimpanzee tracking excursions.
History of Nyungwe Forest National Park
Nyungwe Forest National Park’s history begins in 1933, during the reign of the Belgian colonial administration. However, locals were still allowed to access the forests for firewood and the harvesting of hardwoods for commercial purposes, even though the rule of conservation forbade the removal of forests. In the 1920s, colonial governments became interested in maintaining forests for pasture.
Nyungwe Forest lost more than 150 km2 between 1958 and 1973 as a result of fires, woodcutting, animal hunting, and small-scale agriculture. At this time, the Gishwati and Virunga forests nearby were split in half. In Nyungwe, the number of elephants was still in the hundreds in 1969. The final buffalo was slain in Nyungwe by hunters in 1974. In order to enable the sustainable usage and harvesting of timber, Nyungwe was separated into sections in 1984.
A buffer zone was designed by the Rwandan government, and it is still in use today. Colobus were discovered in groups of up to 400 individuals in 1984 during biodiversity surveys carried out by the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and RDB. This was an unheard-of occurrence. The creation of the trail network in Uwinka started in 1987. Numerous Uwinka research and tourism facilities were destroyed in 1994 as a result of the violence and genocide that ravaged the nation. Many of the junior staff members at Nyungwe stayed to guard the park, while the majority of the senior personnel were compelled to leave. In 1995, the park started to be rebuilt, although safety and stability remained under question. Poachers killed Nyungwe’s final elephant in the swamp in 1999.
Nyungwe was given official national park status by the Rwandan government in 2005, the country’s highest level of protection, giving it protected status.
Fauna and Flora at Nyungwe Forest National Park
The Nyungwe forest is important for conservation in Africa because of the large variety of animal species there. The forest is located where many large-scale biogeographic zones converge, and the variety of terrestrial biomes offers a wide range of microhabitats for numerous species of plants and animals.
The park has 275 bird species, 1068 plant species, 85 animal species, 32 amphibian species, and 38 reptile species, making up 13 primate species (25 percent of all primate species in Africa). Numerous of these creatures are restricted-range species that are exclusive to Africa’s Albertine Rift montane forest ecoregion. Compared to other forests in the Albertine Rift Mountains that have been studied, this one has more endemic species than any other. The forest, which rises to a height of 3000 meters above sea level, is particularly noteworthy for the presence of chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) and Angola colobus (Colobus angolensis) colonies, the latter of which is now extinct in Angola due to the ferocious hunting to which it was subjected.
The best time to visit Nyungwe Forest National Park
You can travel here any time of the year. The main benefit of traveling during the dry season is that chimpanzees go to higher elevations during this time, making it easier to monitor them. The dry season is ideal for outdoor activities including hiking, nature hikes, and other forest-based adventures. The dry season lasts from December through February. However, even in rainy conditions—which primarily occur in the months of March and April—adventures are still conceivable.
The things that are done in Nyungwe Forest National Park
Tracking of chimpanzees
In Volcanoes National Park, chimpanzee tracking is probably an additional adventure to gorilla trekking. In Nyungwe Forest, chimpanzees are habituated, allowing trackers to get close to them. However, because they prefer living at higher altitudes and spend the majority of their time in trees, even habituated apes can occasionally be seen from a distance. This is especially true during dry seasons.
Following an early breakfast, tracking involves being briefed and assigned to a family of habituated chimpanzees. Enroll in the dense rainforest with an armed ranger guide and begin looking for the gorillas. Finding the chimpanzee can take anywhere from 30 minutes to three hours along the track. Trackers are given one hour to locate the chimpanzees. The trail may require cutting through dense vegetation and slick, wet terrain. You should have enough drinking water, a tracking jungle boot, water-resistant clothing, and numerous additional tracking tools.
Primate and monkey tracking
Around 13 different primate species can be found in Nyungwe Forest National Park. The colobus monkey tracked the best among the other monkeys. The Angolan colombi, Dent’s monkeys, grey-checked mangabeys, olive baboons, vervet monkeys, etc. are some other monkey species. Since the local primate species live within the forest plants, tracking them is a unique experience. White and black colobus monkeys, H’loest monkeys, grey-chested mangabeys, red-tailed monkeys, olive baboons, velvet monkeys, patas monkeys, and other species are among those to look out for in this area.
Canopy walks and treetop walks
Another exhilarating activity carried out at Nyungwe Forest National Park are canopy walks. The third-tallest in Africa, the canopy walk at Nyungwe Forest is of the highest caliber. A fantastic canopy-blind walking experience is a requirement for any park visit. It’s an incredible feeling to cross the sagging bridge in the forest while walking over the enormous trees.
On top of Nyungwe’s enormous trees, the suspended bridge is 160 meters long and 70 meters high. One needs to climb for around 30 minutes to get to Uwinka Center, which is where the canopy is. The two-hour canopy walks have starting times of 8 a.m., 10 a.m., 1 p.m., and 3 p.m. Don’t expect to see many things while walking above trees, but it is a unique experience regardless of your level of fitness. Looking down, it’s a no-go area with a pronounced valley below and rocks that frequently experience lightning strikes when it looks like it will rain.
Bird Watching Experience
One of the few bird-rewarding areas in Rwanda, Nyungwe Forest National Park, has over 300 species of birds reported in its forest. About 25 of the species are indigenous to Alberta, including 11 of the 23 species found in the Guinea-Congo Forest biome. At this location, 71 of the 74 species that make up this biome of Rwanda’s afrotropical highlands have been identified.
The most important region for mountain bird protection is Nyungwe Forest. More than any other location, the forest is the best place in the nation to see birds. However, due to the denseness of the forest, it can occasionally be challenging to see a variety of bird species.
Nature Walks
A network of natural walking pathways has been maintained by Nyungwe Forest National Park. The length of the walking paths ranges from 2 km for the shortest to 10 km for the longest. The walking paths around here are color-coded. Colobus, chimpanzees, birds, and other forest residents can all be seen when taking a nature walk at Nyungwe Forest.
The shortest distance along the famed Buhoro Trail is 2 kilometers. One of the most well-known routes is the 2.1-kilometer Igishigishigi Trail, which offers a breathtaking vista of tree ferns. The best view is along the 3.6-kilometer Irebero Trail. The 5.5-kilometer Umuyove Trail passes through areas with bigger mahogany trees, waterfalls, several bird species, and vibrant flowers.