It is not just Gordon who is on the move! As he makes his way into Zambia to set up home there, he comes across these cheeky baboons, travelling in the opposite direction, bound for Zimbabwe. Luckily, baboons can move freely between the countries, so, unlike Gordon, they won’t be needing a passport!
These are chacma baboons, gregarious animals that sleep, travel, feed and socialise together in groups of about 50, consisting of several males and about twice as many females plus their young. These family units form the stable core of a troop, with a ranking system that elevates certain females as leaders. A troop’s home range is well-defined but does not appear to have territorial borders. Their range often overlaps within the range of other baboons, but troops seem to avoid meeting one another, keeping busy feeding on the ground and in trees on fruit, seeds, rhizomes and insects.
Unfortunately, baboon’s major predators are humans. Known to be fierce fighters, males may confront other predators like leopard or cheetah by forming a line and strutting in a threatening manner while baring their large canines and screaming, which can put the predator on the run.
The country of Zambia forms part of two transfrontier conservation areas, the Kavango Zambezi and Malawi-Zambia. It is the only place in the world where four countries, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Zambia, meet at a single frontier. It lies in southern Africa and is one of the continent’s best safari destinations. Here, numerous wildlife corridors can be found which see large wild animal and bird migrations taking place each year. It is also home to some of the worlds most precious endemic flowering plants and animals which make the country’s protected areas vitally important. Here, many people still live in extreme povertly, but in partnership with local and international organisations, Peace Parks is working to alleviate this and promote a more sustainable future for these communities.
