This next post is from Sally Coxe, the Director of BCI, the Bonobo Conservation Initiative. When I talked to Sally, one of the things I was struck with was how wonderful it was that BCI could complement and work with Lola for bonobo conservation. Sally is working hard to form bonobo protection areas, and this little bonobo she rescued is an example of how the partnership between two organisations can help save bonobos, and their future. If you want to visit Sally and her awesome projects, visit www.bonobo.org

Here are some pictures of Iboko (a.k.a. Lodja). The reason we named
her Iboko when we rescued her is because she came from the forest
nearby the village of Iboko, south of Lac Tumba. We rescued her
together with our partner CREF, Centre de Recherche en Ecologie et
Forestrie, in Mbandaka, the capital of the Equateur province, which is
a major crossroads for the bushmeat trade. At the time, we had one
expedition coming in and another going out, and we were all at our
office in Mbandaka.

One day we saw a guy riding down the street on a
bicycle with a baby bonobo. Dr. Mwanza Ndunda, the director of CREF
and other staff went racing after him, and called the Mbandaka police
force to assist us. They brought the young man, who was a hunter,
and baby Iboko back to our office. The hunter was trying to sell
her. He did not know that it is against both national and
international laws to hunt or to sell bonobos (nor did the Mbandaka
police force until we brought that fact to their attention).

I’ll never forget seeing Iboko for the first time. She was tied up
around the waist by a string that cut into her flesh. She was
dehydrated, exhausted and traumatized. It is a wonder she survived the
long journey to Mbandaka, after having witnessed the killing of her
mother and most likely other members of her home group. The hunter
was eating an orange freeze and Iboko kept motioning for him to give
her some, but he would not share with her. Finally, when we explained
to the hunter that it is against the law to sell bonobos–and why it
is so important to protect them–he obliged and gave Iboko to us.

She was frail and so afraid. We immediately set out to find fruits and
baby formula to re-hydrate and revive her. The first thing we tried
to feed her were oranges. She liked it best when we chewed it up a
little and then gave it to her, the way bonobo mothers do. Once she
started drinking baby formula, she couldn’t get enough of it, and she
began to recover quickly.

Iboko needed to be carried or held at every moment. Thus, we ate
together, slept together, bathed together, peed together
(unfortunately, she peed at her own discretion, often all over my
clothes…but it did not take long for her to catch on and do her
business elsewhere)! One morning I had set the alarm clock very early
and it was still dark when it rang. I groped around, trying to find
it to switch it off…and Guess Who had picked it up!

Iboko was so sweet–and so smart. I miss her even now.

After a week or so, we flew back to Kinshasa, as special guests on the
airplane, riding in the cockpit! Holding her the whole way, we
finally arrived at Lola. The other babies were already in their night
cages, and all reached out and made “waah” calls to greet Iboko, but
she was afraid. It was an excruciatingly painful moment for me to put
her in a cage by herself and have to walk away. Claudine had to help
me do it. I felt horrible and wished I could have stayed at Lola that
night with her, so that she would not be scared–or feel as if she
were being abandoned.

If she felt that way then, it’s only a memory today. The team at Lola
have taken good care of her, and it did not take long for Iboko, now
Lodja, to adjust to her new home. It’s wonderful to see how happy and
healthy she is now, with her newfound family and friends.

(that’s Lodja in the middle getting groomed by everyone-V)

But each orphan bonobo that is rescued means many more have died. We
must do all we can to protect bonobos and their habitat in the Congo
rainforest!

(lodja, peeking through the bushes in her new home)
xox Sally

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