Lack of funds halts efforts to establish baby chimp’s father at Ngamba

He added that the DNA would cost about $150 (Shs562,254) which would bring the total cost to Shs11,245,080 for the 20 chimps to be tested.

“Unfortunately, we don't have that money at the moment. We need support in terms of funds to subject all the 20 chimps to a DNA test,” Dr Rukundo told Daily Monitor on Monday.

Dr Titus Mukungu, the sanctuary manager and veterinarian said they normally carry out annual health check-ups for all the 50 chimps on the island.

“During the health checks ups, we are able to understand their health statuses since many things are tested. Therefore it is better for us to leverage on this to get the samples from the males,” he said.

He also noted that annual checkup costs about $7000 (Shs26,238,534), however they are still waiting for this pandemic to come to an end and then carry out the checkups since the money for that exercise is available.

Last year on September 3, Natasha 29, one of the brilliant female chimps at Ngamba island chimpanzee sanctuary, gave birth to an ‘unwanted’ bouncing female chimp named Tamtam, but her father was not known.

The authorities at Ngamba Island told Daily Monitor that the chimp mother had an affair with at least three male chimps and that at the right time, DNA tests will have to be conducted to identify the father.

Mr Innocent Ampeire, an officer at Nagamba, explained: “Just like the case for human beings, a woman can have a baby without knowing the real father. So even Natasha doesn’t know the father of her newly born baby.”

“We suspect three male chimps because Natasha had an affair with them and these include Kalema, Baron and Omugenzi,” Mr Ampeire said.

Natasha is said to have conceived after she allegedly rejected contraceptives given to sexually active female chimps at one of the world’s leading sanctuaries for primates.
Born in Kibale in 1990 before she was rescued from Arua, Natasha arrived at Chimp Island in October 1998.

For 20 years, the sanctuary has had only four baby chimps, including Natasha’s daughter (tam tam). The two females and one male baby chimpanzees born before Natasha’s daughter are Kyewunyo, Ruparelia and Eazy.

Like human beings, the managers give female chimps contraceptives to prevent unwanted pregnancies. This is done to control their population at a sanctuary meant for only stranded or orphaned primates.

About the implants
The authorities at Ngamba use implants to control unwanted pregnancies. However, for the last three years, this birth control measure has registered a failure rate of about 5 per cent.
The birth control implant is a tiny, thin rod about the size of a matchstick.

It’s also called Nexplanon and there’s a slightly older version called Implanon. A doctor inserts the implant under the skin of the chimp’s upper arm. It then releases the hormone progestin to stop the female primates from getting pregnant.
For Natasha’s unwanted pregnancy, it was a case of failed birth control measure.

“Chimpanzees pregnancy lasts for about eight months. Natasha’s baby brings the number of chimpanzees at Ngamba Island to 50, which include 20 males and 30 females.”

The island
Ngamba Island is 23km southeast of Entebbe on Lake Victoria. The island is part of the archipelago of Koome islands on Lake Victoria in Mukono District and sits on about 95 acres of rain forest.