The Newest Edition to M Group

The newest edition to M group. While out chimping this season we have noticed a new addition to the M group family. Of all who have visited Greystoke some have been fortunate to have seen the little baby who is believed to be around 3 months old now. What a little cutie.

Within the group dynamics poor Bonobo has a broken arm and is being hassled by the other males trying to display and threatening his ranking. All guests have been seeing some amazing behavior.

Christmas (Xmas) is still the naughtiest giving everyone good charges and guests have come back to camp saying how close he comes when displaying. Primus the Alpha male controls the group fairly but every now and again has to discipline some of the naughty males and rushes past the guests with a big log in tow and shakes the branches in his display and creating order in his Group.

Hope to keep you all posted on what happens with Bonobo and the rest of M group in the coming weeks

Sacha

Settling in: Life at Mahale

Life in Mahale National Park is easy to settle into for new camp managers.  Late breakfasts due to the late sunrises over the mountains.  Gorgeous sunsets over Lake Tanganyika and the Congo.  Guests go hiking in the mornings yet we have chimp sightings in camps multiple times a week lately.  What is not to love?

We view a new group of guests as if we are turning the channel of a television; we have new entertainment of fascinating dinner conversations turn up in our camp every 3-4 days.  In our short time here, we've seen groups form quick bonds and stay in touch and have been lucky to be included in their vows of friendship that span a globe. 

Life in Mahale is grand. 
Come visit,
Matt and Parker

Nomad Tanzania: Hot off the press!

Check out the coverage The Business Year gives Nomad in their upcoming book about Tanzania.

Welcome to our new home!

Greystoke Mahale is proud to welcome our new camp managers: Matt Crowley-Miano and Parker Campbell.  The chimps, this time of year, are spreading out in small groups at times and making trips into our camp to raid our fig tree.  It's a beautiful time of year in Mahale.  The sashimi is fresh, and the sunsets are gorgeous.   

Leopard cub(s?)!!!!

It is quite difficult to see the clear evidence in these photos and for that we apologise. There were very few of these prints remaining because their path crossed with the path of a supply boat being offloaded early this morning. It was then that we found the leopard tracks with accompanying tracks i.e. a cub!

The gestation period for leopards is 90-105 days. These prints are pretty small; cubs can walk from two weeks but don't usually come out of the den to learn to hunt until 2 months. We think ther den must be very close!

It was impossible to tell if the tracks were from more than 1 cub (a litter is usually 2 or 3), but we sincerely hope so as fewer than 50% of leopard cubs reach the age of 1 year, therfore it would better the odds significantly!

You can see the cub print on the left above the word 'left', and the mamma cub's print on the right of this photo.

We really hope to keep seeing this mamma leopard with accompanying tracks for some time to come, and of course, not just the tracks - we recently had one guest who had a motion-detecting camera in use overnight. We knew the leopards were around thanks to the askari's nightwatch. Sadly the camera didn't 'capture' any leopards, despite setting up the camera in the places where we thought it most likely to spot them. As soon as we have any evidence beyond prints, be sure you will hear about it!

Stinky Mushrooms

This is a Netted Stinkhorn, Dictyophora duplicata. Also known as the Skirted Stinkhorn or Veiled Stinkhorn, this mushroom takes its name from that lacy fringe that hangs down from the cap. In this case the fringe is particularly long.

As you can guess from this blog post's title, this mushroom really smells terrible.  When spotted on the jungle pathway between the managers' room and Banda 7, it was detectable from quite a few meters away. It’s way of propagating is by attracting insects who are drawn to the gooey cap which is covered in a sticky, sweet layer that the insects feed on, within which are the mushroom’s spores. 
Their spores can’t be carried on the wind, as with most mushrooms, so it relies entirely on insects, primarily flies and butterflies to procreate.

Unlike most fungi, which have a root-like network, stinkhorns begin life as an egg. The fruiting body begins at"egg" stage, from which the phallic body emerges over the course of just a few hours. The growth of a stinkhorn from egg to full length is incredibly fast- less than a day. It was spotted at 3pm and there was no evidence the next morning at first light, in our case. For a lifecycle video see this YouTube video: Netted Stinkhorn Mushroom

Some members of this group of mushroom are considered a delicacy; in China it’s considered an aphrodisiac, eaten at "egg" stage or after maturity once the cap has been removed. They are even cultivated and sold in shops, fresh or dry! For us the smell was too off-putting to consider trying to eat it, and don’t worry, that’s not where any of the mushrooms on the menu are sourced!

Mahale All Stars

With one good month to go before the end of this season in Greystoke Mahale, we’d like to have a quick look back on some of the real stars that the M group produced this season. 

Primus Time

Undoubtedly the big breakthrough of this season; Primus (25 yrs) crowned himself Alpha male in September last year. Initially based on a fragile alliance without full support of the high ranking females, the past 6 months he has increasingly become a respected Alpha male. Mistake not! Primus’ daily task isn’t small as he’s leading a group of 60 individuals through their 37 sq km home range in search of food. 

Primus, just after he became Alpha in September 2012.

Both physically big and strong, our take is that Primus will remain in his position for some time to come. However, competition from other males is present and it won’t be an easy position to maintain as he will be challenged. As you might be so lucky to trek the Mahale Mts, Primus is easy to spot by both his physical size, brownish face and the white dot on his bottom lip. 

Primus last week as we met with him just out of camp.

Michio – Mr lips

Meet Michio (17 yrs) - one of our absolute favorites. Michio is a low ranking male chimpanzee that is not even close to the likes of the real biggies such as Primus, Alofu, Darwin and Orion. But Michio’s charm is in his calmness and in his inquisitive behavior. 

Michio checking out who that other chimpanzee really is...

Featuring in the camp’s most spectacular video of the year – the chimp and the mirror - Michio’s reaction to our camp mirror was one never to forget! 

Michio - charming as always - having trouble keeping his mouth closed.

But there is more. Michio feels at ease with humans. He sometimes comfortably moves within the 10 meter range and makes a many heart beat faster. Last November, when we observed the M group eating mangoes from our tree in Greystoke camp, Michio approached the group to wait for his turn to get to the fruits. Together with our guests were observing the scene from the steps of the toilet building when Michio walked up to us within a meter. He had decided to wait for his turn together with us. Quietly he sat down on the step next to us, feeling totally at ease. 

Michio sitting at Greystoke toilet entrance, after we moved away a little from Michio's cozyness...

Michio is also well known for his hanging bottom lip. Certainly looking forward to see more this man soon!

Orion – The short fused one

Nr 5 in the group, Orion (23 yrs), belongs to the crème de la crème of de M unit and he likes showing it. Although Primus undoubtedly is his superior, Orion too is impressive if it comes to physics. 

Orion, as he chews away on freshly picked mango fruit.

He is the chimpanzee that loves power displays - in particular showing them to humans. Wildly crushing through the trees and jumping from vines to branches, when this chimpanzee is on a rage towards you standing your ground suddenly becomes very exciting! 

Numerous hilarious moments we had with this short fused chimpanzee. But make no mistake – never does he touch – but lasting impressions for the mind he brings. For sure!

Ceasar & Teddy – Sweet as honey

Both young adults, Ceasar (14 yrs) and Teddy yrs (12 yrs) are the handsome guys of the group. Not close to being ranked as decisive individuals, their submission to Primus and the other higher ranking individuals is vital for their existence. 

Ceasar posing for the camera, with hands under his chin.

Growing slowly further into adult hood will show how much physics and importance they will gain.

But for now the two pink and cute faced ones have the looks that makes one wonder if they really aren’t human. 

Teddy - or Mr Pose - himself...

Not shy at all, it’s the positions that both males tend to take for pictures. Arms crossed, hand under the chin, slightly turned head - marvelous material!!