Bili is a small town east of Bondo and north of Buta and Kisangani in the north of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Its name comes from the Bili River, which is a side-arm of the Ubangi River and passes through the town of Bili. The area is quite wild and isolated and next to forest we also find marshlands and savanna where several large mammals live. The area is called the Bili-Uele Protected Area and is often plagued by poachers and militias. There is a small initiative in which a few dozen rangers are being trained to patrol the area, together with the ICCN. The region got famous when in 2003 a controversial claim was made by an American researcher about an enormous chimpanzee living here, called the Bili Ape, which might be a subspecies. Next to chimpanzees we can also find elephants, lions, hyenas, golden cat, leopards, bongos, pangolins and other mammals.
In the nineties it was noticed that some skulls at the Africa Museum in Tervuren, Brussels were labeled as gorilla skulls coming from an area which doesn’t have gorillas, but only chimpanzees. Furthermore, the people in this area, between Bondo and Bili, in the north of Congo, claimed there are large chimpanzees roaming the area, who howl at the moon and even eat lions. A discovery of a local skull which was abnormally big, made the mystery even bigger. The chimpanzee was quickly dubbed the Bili Ape or the Bondo Ape.
A new expedition was led in 2004 by an NBC team and primatologist Cleve Hicks who teamed up with scientists and locals for more than two weeks in the Bili-Uele Forest in search of these big apes. It was said there were traces, but it is hard to keep track of a primate in a dense forest where they have the upperhand. Hicks stayed in the area for months searching for the Bili Ape and even captured some images of Bili apes. By DNA tests it seems that the apes would be chimpanzees and not a new species. However, these chimps have some unique behavior which is different from that of other chimps. They often nest on the ground, like gorillas and they use very long tools. The expeditions taught us that there are huge populations of chimpanzees in the area.
What do you think? Do you think the Bili Ape (or Bondo Ape) is a new species or could this be a subspecies of a chimpanzee?
We have a great team with forest experience in Kisangani and also have very close relationships with the ICCN. It is possible to set up an expedition to the Bili Forest with our company. One would need around two to three weeks for this and the expedition starts from Kisagani.
From Kisangani we drive to Buta by 4×4. We know the area well from previous expeditions. After spending the night in Buta, we continue to Bondo. In Bondo we’ll make all the arrangements for our boat as well as motorbikes for the coming two weeks. We will explore the Bili Forest by means of boat and also on foot. For this expedition we will camp and eat local meals. As this is a true expedition, which requires a lot of preparation and demands a whole team joining us, this is a very expensive operation. Expect to pay at least 30.000 USD for the Bili Ape expedition.
Serious enquiries only!!!
