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Chipangali Wildlife Orphanage

Published : November 23, 2017

Location: The wildlife orphanage is situated 23 kilometres from Bulawayo along the main Bulawayo/Gwanda road. Description and Background: Chipangali is a…

Location:

The wildlife orphanage is situated 23 kilometres from Bulawayo along the main Bulawayo/Gwanda road.

Description and Background:
Chipangali is a haven for wild animals which have little hope for survival in the wild – creatures which have been orphaned, abandoned, injured, born in captivity or brought up unsuccessfully as pets. It is often the last refuge for those brought in sick or injured, and increasingly it is a sanctuary for confiscated animals.

Chipangali has been featured in countless documentaries and is now world-renowned for its pioneering work and is famed as one of Africa’s largest and most successful wildlife rehabilitation/release centres.

The wildlife Orphanage was established in 1973 by ex-game ranger Vivian Wilson and his wife Paddy, and its primary function is to offer a home to orphaned, abandoned and sick wild animals. Chipangali is not a zoo.

Wherever possible, rescued animals and birds are rehabilitated and returned to the wild. If safe release into their natural habitat is not possible, animals are cared for and kept for educational purposes and zoological study. In the case of endangered species, captive breeding programs may also be undertaken.

Chipangali Wildlife Orphanage is a registered Welfare Organization (38/77) in Zimbabwe.

The word Chipangali comes from the Chinyanja language in eastern Zambia where Viv Wilson originally began his career in with the Zambia Government as a tsetse-fly control operator, it is here that the whole concept of Chipangali was born and derived. The word means ‘open friendly country’.

The Mission of Chipangali Wildlife Orphanage:

Wildlife Orphanage/ Animal Rehabilitation Centre
To provide a service to rescue and care for injured wildlife, thereby providing a home for the many injured, sick, orphaned, abused, confiscated or abandoned wild animals from anywhere in Zimbabwe.
Education
To educate the Zimbabwe public, especially young children, with the aid of live viewing of many species not easily seen in the wild. Provide relevant lectures, film and slide shows for visiting groups. Thus providing a local resource centre for children to appreciate the important value of Zimbabwe’s natural heritage.
Nature Conservation
To teach people and especially children, to appreciate the wonder and variety of indigenous wildlife and not to take it for granted that these animals or their environment will not always be there for their enjoyment without the correct management of our natural resources.
Research
To observe and record useful zoological information on captive animals such as body growth and development, nutrition, dentition and gestation periods. Relevant research and field surveys are undertaken in the wild, under natural conditions in National Parks and protected areas.
Cooperation
To provide a link between local and governmental authorities thus being able to offer assistance to organizations like SPCA, National Parks, schools and private individuals where ever problem animals are concerned.

Programs at Chipangali:

Volunteering, Outreach and Education Programs and more

About Volunteering
Volunteers on this project work with a range of animals, anything from monkeys to lions. They experience beautiful Zimbabwe while making a positive impact on the delicate African ecosystem. No experience is needed to work with the animals as all the training will be provided. All we ask is that volunteers are enthusiastic and dedicated to working with animals.

Connecting Communities
Chipangali helps conserve Zimbabwe’s wildlife by connecting communities – especially children – to their natural heritage. Children are the future of Africa and hence it is important to inculcate in them a love and respect for their wonderful natural heritage. No other continent is as rich in wildlife as Africa from our mighty carnivores to the many antelopes, to the majestic elephants to the reptiles and the many birds of prey that thrive here. By protecting our Wildlife, we bring in millions of tourists who visit our national parks on safari, buy souvenirs that support our local communities and spend money on dining and hotels.

Outreach efforts include:

Operating the Diana Princess of Wales Children’s Education Center at the Chipangali Wildlife Orphanage.
Leading visits to the Wildlife Orphanage where children and visitors can observe and learn about many species not easily seen in the wild.
Highlighting the need for wildlife conservation and management through partnerships with local universities.
Giving Zimbabwean children access to environmental education through Chipangali’s EPIC Kids Program (Environmental Programs Involving Children).

Research at Chipangali:

A broad range of scientific research is conducted at Chipangali.

We appreciate it as much as anyone that free and wild living animals in a natural environment are far more suitable for research purposes than captive ones, but there are many aspects of research that cannot be done in the wild.

For instance, behaviour is an important study that can be carried out on captive animals, and although captivity is unnatural, there are many aspects of behaviour that are instinctive or inherited. Reproduction behaviour, for example, cannot easily be established in the wild, especially with nocturnal carnivores, and gestation periods would be almost impossible to establish in a National Park or Game Reserve.

Periods of lactation, the composition of milk, and changes in its composition over the period of lactation, can never be established in the wild. Tooth development and replacement in individual and selected animals are other studies that can be undertaken on captive animals and there are many species with unusual characteristics that can only be studied in captivity.

It should be borne in mind that conservation of endangered species is inseparable from scientific research and if a species is already rare in the wild then studies will have to be conducted with captive animals. The information thus obtained can then be applied when dealing with the wild populations.

Due to the ever-increasing demand on land because of human over-population, more and more wildlife are being restricted to pockets of land which are the National Parks and Protected areas. Wildlife utilisation is becoming a booming industry on private ranches, but many of the endangered predator species such as brown hyaena and cheetah are destroyed by landowners who do not want their livestock threatened by the large predators.

The Animals at Chipangali

No other continent is as rich in wildlife as Africa from our mighty carnivores to the many antelopes, to the majestic elephants to the reptiles and the many birds of prey that thrive here.

Chipangali Wildlife Orphanage has many interesting permanent and temporary residents. There are also many interesting animals, reptiles and birds in the area. Here are some of the many you may see: