My name is Lieven Devreese. As a primatologist I spent a total of 18 months in the Central African forest studying agile mangabeys and bonobos at three different field sites. Over the years I build up a good knowledge of all primate species in the region.

                                                                   Tshuapa red colobus (Piliocolobus tholloni)

For this expedition I want to go to the Republic of Congo to look for a critically endangered species of red colobus monkey, called Bouvier’s red colobus (Piliocolobus bouvieri). The species has not been seen by scientists since the 1970s and virtually nothing is known about them. If you google it, you will not find a single picture. Actually, the species is largely ignored in the literature. A single report from 1949 gives some information about its distribution and only three museum specimens are known that have been collected about 100 years ago. They are reported to live in an area where scientists rarely go, along the banks of rivers in very inaccessible habitat. They might be extinct, but we just don’t know. Help us fill in this gap. Help us find this elusvie red colobus monkey!

Expedition outline

In January 2015 I want to set off and spend three months looking for monkeys in Congo. It will be an adventurous expedition by car, motorbike, or bicycle, but mainly in a dug-out canoe and on foot through extremely remote areas. A Congolese assistent will go with me on the whole trip. We will ask the people in the villages whether they know this red monkey and then we will head off, hiking through the forest, searching along the rivers. We will hike from one faraway village to the next, covering four forest blocks, a total of 300 or more kilometers. We will bring our tents, cook on wood fire and we will have to rely fully on local food supplies. During my last 10-month stay in the field I learned Lingala, so I don't have a problem talking to the people in Congo.

What do we expect to find?

The inaccessible swamps red colobus monkeys live in might give them some level of protection against hunting. And if no scientist ever goes there, we have no data and it might be they are not as endangered as we think. But that’s the optimistic view. More likely, these monkeys are under severe threat from the commercial bushmeat trade. Hunting is traditionally part of the Central African culture, but nowadays a lot of meat is smoked and transported to the cities. Traders use rivers as highways and in the habitat of Bouvier’s red colobus monkeys there are a lot of big rivers. Red colobus monkeys are also extremely vulnerable to hunting. They are among the largest monkeys in Africa, so they are a good kill for hunters. They live in large, noisy groups and are not particularly good at detecting predators, or hunters.

What we need

For this three-month expedition we need about $5000 in total. We need money for:

• transport, lodging and food
• salaries of the assistant, trackers, porters and cooks
• research permits and permission of the village chiefs to enter their forests
• some of the necessary equipment, like a solar panel to charge gps batteries

See the detailed project proposal for more information on the bugdet, aims and planning of this expedition. Travelling and working in remote areas in Congo is not an easy thing and a lot of obstacles have to be overcome. At any time it is possible that the expedition will have to be cancelled because of security or health issues, to name just two obstacles. However, I build up a good amount of field experience and I am confident that the expedition aims will be fulfilled, hopefully finding Bouvier's red colobus.

Perks

We will greatly appreciate your support, in any way. In return we can offer you a number of special perks. See the details on the right side of this page.

• For 25 dollar Lieven will send you a postcard from Brazzaville, the capital of the Republic of Congo. 
• Donate 50 dollar and we will send you a package with pictures, videos and unique sound recordings from the forest, hopefully including red colobus monkeys. 
• 100 dollar equals the same multimedia package, plus a unique, locally-made Congolese bracelet. 
• For 300 dollar Lieven will come to your living room, zoo or institution to give an exciting talk about the expedition.