Free at last...

It has been a very, very long road, for the monkeys, our staff, and our community partners, to reach what was really a very momentous and emotional day - November 1st, 2007. The day 3 rehabilitated mona monkeys were released back into Rhoko forest, to start the process of restoring Iko Esai forest's community of primates to its former glory and help protect not only this species, but all primates.

All three individuals were born in the wild, and rescued as orphans, by-products of the bushmeat trade. They were transported to a forest enclosure at Rhoko in 2004, to a separate release enclosure in July 2007 and finally released, after final health checks were conducted, radio collars and microchips fitted, and all the necessary protocols and permissions obtained, on November 1st 2007.

Dawn to dusk tracking will provide us with vital information about their behaviour in these crucial early months following their release, and also provide valuable insight and information about possible future reintroductions of primates into the depleted West African rainforests. We are happy to report that the trio is doing very well, foraging for insects, fruits and leaves, and staying together as a group with adult male 'July' acting periodically as 'sentry' for the two females. They have moved only about 300 metres from their original location in the release enclosure, and fears about them returning to their former easy life have so far been unfounded. They are certainly not at all interested in returning to either enclosure where they were fed and cared for in the past and appear to be quite happy remaining in the forest and looking after themselves, thank you very much!

Thanks to all of our supporters who have helped us reach this tremendous goal. The series of photos below gives some insight into their journey.