​Wildlife & Animals – Mahale Mountains NP

Philip Briggs
Expert
By Philip Briggs

Philip is a renowned Africa expert and author of many Bradt guidebooks to African destinations, including the guide to Tanzania.

Philip is a renowned Africa expert and author of the Bradt guidebook to Tanzania.

Philip is the author of the Bradt guidebook to Tanzania.

The main attraction in Mahale Mountains is its population of chimpanzees. There are roughly 800 chimps in the park, and about 60 of them are very habituated to people. Your guide will take you, on foot, along the forest trails to find them.

Abundant
Common
Occasional
Rare
None
GorillaNone
ChimpanzeeCommon
White RhinoNone
Black RhinoNone
LionVery Rare
LeopardRare
CheetahNone
HippoOccasional
BuffaloRare
ZebraRare
WildebeestNone
ElephantRare
GiraffeRare

Wildlife Highlights

Chimps aside, eight other primate species have been recorded and at least five are likely to be encountered on a visit. These are yellow baboon, red colobus, blue monkey, red-tailed monkey and vervet monkey. The nocturnal lesser and greater galago are more likely to be heard than seen. The eastern slopes of Mahale support populations of elephant, lion, wild dog, roan antelope, buffalo and giraffe, but they are rarely seen by visitors.

Best Time for Wildlife Viewing

The Dry season from May to October, is the best time for trekking chimpanzees. At this time, the chimps tend to stay close to the lakeshore and are easier to find. The park stays open throughout the year but, in heavy rain, the trails might be difficult to walk.

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