The Bwindi Impenetrable Forest is a large

primeval forest An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological featur ...

located in south-western

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...

in the

Kanungu District Kanungu District is a district in the Western Region of Uganda. The town of Kanungu is the site of the district headquarters. The Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in Kanungu District is among the sites shown in aerial footage in the movie Black Pant ...

. The Bwindi forest is on the edge of the

Albertine Rift The Albertine Rift is the western branch of the East African Rift, covering parts of Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania. It extends from the northern end of Lake Albert to the southern end of Lake Tan ...

, the western branch of the

East African Rift The East African Rift (EAR) or East African Rift System (EARS) is an active continental rift zone in East Africa. The EAR began developing around the onset of the Miocene, 22–25 million years ago. In the past it was considered to be part of a ...

, at elevations ranging from . The forest contains around 160 species of trees and over 100 species of ferns.

Origin of name

The name Bwindi is derived from the

Runyakitara Runyakitara is a standardized language based on four closely related languages of western Uganda: * Nyoro or ''Runyoro'' * Kiga (Chiga) or ''Rukiga'' * Nkore or ''Runyankole'' * Tooro or ''Rutooro'' Jouni Filip Maho's 2009 New Updated Guthrie ...

word ''Mubwindi'' and means "a place full of darkness". This name comes from the extensive stands of bamboo interspersed amongst the larger forest hardwoods. The bamboo and thick ground cover of ferns, vines, and other plant growth severely hinder direct access on foot. Also known as the "Place of Darkness", the forest is on the edge of the western arm of the

Great Rift Valley The Great Rift Valley is a series of contiguous geographic trenches, approximately in total length, that runs from Lebanon in Asia to Mozambique in Southeast Africa. While the name continues in some usages, it is rarely used in geology as it i ...

, only a few kilometers from the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

(DRC) border and about north of the Virunga Mountains.

Wildlife

The forest is one of the most biologically diverse areas on Earth. Half of the world's population of the highly endangered

mountain gorilla The mountain gorilla (''Gorilla beringei beringei'') is one of the two subspecies of the eastern gorilla. It is listed as endangered by the IUCN as of 2018. There are two populations: One is found in the Virunga volcanic mountains of Central/ ...

s live within its borders. The forest has been recognized by the

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

as a

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

for its biological significance. At present the forest is believed to contain 120 mammals species, 348 bird species, 220 butterfly species and 27 frog species. Included among the mammals are

forest elephants The African forest elephant (''Loxodonta cyclotis'') is one of the two living African elephant species. It is native to humid forests in West Africa and the Congo Basin. It is the smallest of the three living elephant species, reaching a shoulde ...

and yellow-backed duikers. While mountain gorillas are the most notable of the forest's primates, other residents include

chimpanzees The chimpanzee (''Pan troglodytes''), also known as simply the chimp, is a species of great ape native to the forest and savannah of tropical Africa. It has four confirmed subspecies and a fifth proposed subspecies. When its close relative the ...

, blue monkeys, l’Hoest’s monkeys, red-tailed monkeys,

vervet monkeys The vervet monkey (''Chlorocebus pygerythrus''), or simply vervet, is an Old World monkey of the family Cercopithecidae native to Africa. The term "vervet" is also used to refer to all the members of the genus ''Chlorocebus''. The five distinct ...

and black-and-white colobus monkeys. The forest's birds include great blue turacos, black-billed turacos, black bee-eaters, African green broadbills, handsome francolins, African black ducks and Cassin’s grey flycatchers.

Socioeconomic struggles

The forest has been described as "Riven by disputes and crosshatched by historical, political, and biological borders" by researcher Craig Stanford, co-director of the park's Jane Goodall Research Center. The forest is the traditional home of the

Batwa people Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a major American airline which operated from 1930 until 2001. It was formed as Transcontinental & Western Air to operate a route from New York City to Los Angeles via St. Louis, Kansas City, and other stops, with F ...

, a marginalized community within Ugandan society.

Establishment of a national park

In 1991, the

Bwindi Impenetrable National Park The Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (BINP) is in southwestern Uganda. The park is part of the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest and is situated along the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) border next to the Virunga National Park and on the edge o ...

was established, adjacent to the Uganda,

Rwanda Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator ...

and

DRC The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

border region. The park was create to protect the forest's mountain gorilla population from poachers and habitat loss. Gorilla treks are led on a daily basis into difference sections of the forest so that trekkers can see the mountain gorillas and in so doing generate necessary funds for the protection of these endangered primates. The Batwa people lost their traditional hunting grounds through the establishment of the park.

References

Forests of Uganda Afromontane forests Old-growth forests Kanungu District

External links