This reserve, like Gombe Stream NP, is mainly a chimpanzee sanctuary
but you won't find it marked on many maps since it was only created in
1985. It's on the knuckleshaped area of land which protrudes into Lake
Tanganyika about halfway down the lake. The highest peak in the park,
Nkungwe (2460 m), ensures that moist air blowing in from the lake condenses
there and falls as rain. This rain supports extensive montane forests,
grasslands and alpine bamboo. Numerous valleys intersect the mountains,
and some of these have permanent streams which flow into the lake. The
eastern site of the mountains is considerably drier and supports what is
know as miombo woodlands. It's a very isolated area.
The animals which live in this park show closer affinities with western
rather than eastern Africa. They include chimpanzee,brush-tailed porcupine,
various species of colobus monkey, guinea fowl and mangoese. Scientists,
mainly from Japan, have been studying the chimpanzees for 20 years, during
which time more than 100 of the animals have been habituated to human
contact. The population have been dramaticully increased since 1975, when
local people were moved to villages outside the park, this putting a stop
to poaching and field-burning activities. This relocation has also led to
the reapperance of leopard, lion and buffalo, which were never seen in
the past.
Mahale is also one of the parks which you can walk around-there are no
roads in any case. Very few tourists come here because of the remoteness
of the area, but it's well worth it if you have the time and initiative.
