Tacugama Sanctuary Closes Amid Sierra Leone Deforestation Protests

The Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary in Sierra Leone, home to over 100 orphaned chimpanzees, remains closed as its founder Bala Amarasekaran protests ongoing deforestation and land grabbing threatening the sanctuary and local wildlife. Despite government promises, Amarasekaran criticizes insufficient interventions to halt environmental degradation, which has contributed to severe consequences like the 2017 deadly mudslide. Amarasekaran’s sanctuary has been a vital refuge for traumatized chimpanzees, rehabilitating and eventually releasing them into protected rainforest habitats, and is regarded as a leading ecotourism and conservation model in West Africa. Meanwhile, in Australia, Rockhampton Zoo has welcomed two new chimpanzees, Many and Mary, from Sydney Zoo, enhancing the troop’s social and genetic diversity as part of ongoing conservation efforts. These developments underscore the global challenges and dedicated efforts in primate conservation, from protecting habitats in Africa to managing captive populations in zoos worldwide.