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Boabeng-Fiema
Monkey Sanctuary is Ghana’s most famous example of traditional
African conservation. The sanctuary is nestled in between
the two villages of Boabeng and Fiema; the Sanctuary is home
to over 200 Geoffrey’s Pied Colobus and 500 Campbell’s
Mona Monkeys. For more than 150 years the people of Boabeng
and Fiema have considered the monkeys sacred. The traditional
beliefs in both communities prohibit physical harm to the
monkeys. Additionally, the 2 communities came together in
1975 to pass a local modern law prohibiting harm to the monkeys.
Campbell’s Mona Monkeys are forest monkeys. They number
about 500 in the sanctuary. They are brown in colour and eat
leaves, stems, flowers, fruits, and insects. Many times these
monkeys can be seen trying to steal food from local kitchens.
Geoffrey’s Pied Colobus Monkeys are black and white
in colour. They eat leaves stems, and mineralized earth. There
are about 200 in the sanctuary. Early in the morning, the
visitors can hear them calling loudly to one another. Despite
their sacred status within Boabeng and Fiema, these monkeys
do not enjoy this status in many other places around the world.
They are currently listed as vulnerable internationally and
likely endangered if the present rate of habitat change and
hunting continues (The Kingdom Field Guide to African Mammals
1997). Boabeng-Fiema Monkey sanctuary is the only place in
Africa where one can easily view this species in their numbers.
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