BUDONGO CONSERVATION FIELD STATION
Budongo Forest, Uganda
Budongo Forest is home to more than 800 chimpanzees. At Budongo Conservation Field Station (BCFS), chimp habituation began in 1990 with the Sonso community, followed by Waibira in 2011.
Habituation is a process of getting wild chimpanzees used to human presence without changing their natural behavior.
BCFS conducts research on chimps to understand and protect them with Budongo Forest. This research includes studying their behavior, ecology, health and the threats they face, such as habitat loss and human wildlife conflict.
Eco-Guard Team
Bushmeat trade has been a practice that has been passed on from generation to generation across Uganda. With the diversity in cultures around protected areas they are variations on what species of wildlife are preferred to be hunted.
Setting snares for bushmeat however, non targeted species like chimpanzees often get caught posing a serious threat to chimpanzees and other wildlife species in Budongo Forest. Chimps like Kirabo, who lost his hand and Kalema, whose fingers are permanently curled from a snare injury are living reminders of the danger.
The eco guard in BCFS are former hunters who now use their deep knowledge of the forest to protect it.
Recovered snares are transformed into art as part of community awareness and outreach.
Bird Monitoring
Birds are excellent indicators species of forest health and Budongo’s aviation diversity is closely monitored through a mist netting and point counts. At specific transects in the forest, mist nets are used to catch birds, which are then measured identified and released unharmed.
They collect date on beak size, wing length, tail length, weight, body molt of the bird and species abundance. These details help track changes in bird population, identify signs of environmental shifts and support biodiversity conservation.
Phenology
At Budongo Conservation Field Station, researchers carry out phenology monitoring by selecting and marking specific tree species across the forest. Each tree is observed regularly to record when it flowers, fruits, or sheds its leaves. These long-term observations help scientists understand seasonal changes, forest productivity, and how food availability influences the behavior and movements of chimpanzees.
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