Updated
The black-and-white colobus is one of Uganda’s easiest monkeys to see and one of the most striking, with a jet-black body, a white mantle and a long white-tipped tail that streams behind it as it leaps between trees. You will find it in most forested parks, often without trying. Kibale and the Bigodi wetland, Bwindi, the Entebbe Botanical Gardens and Budongo Forest near Murchison Falls are the most reliable places.
Kibale Forest and Bigodi Wetland
Kibale Forest has one of the highest densities of primates in Africa, and colobus are common along the chimpanzee-tracking trails and the road through the forest. Kibale is also the best place in Uganda for the rarer Ugandan red colobus, which lives in large, noisy groups. Just outside the park, the community-run Bigodi Wetland Sanctuary walk passes through swamp forest where black-and-white colobus, red colobus and several other monkeys are often seen at close range.
Bwindi Impenetrable Forest
Gorilla trekkers often see black-and-white colobus on the walk to the gorillas or on forest walks around Buhoma, together with red-tailed monkeys, blue monkeys and L’Hoest’s monkeys. Look for them in the tall trees along streams and at the forest edge near lodges, where groups sun themselves in the early morning. Read more about the other primates of Bwindi.
Entebbe, Budongo and other sites
The Entebbe Botanical Gardens, on the shore of Lake Victoria near the airport, have resident colobus that are used to people, an easy sighting on your first or last day. In Murchison Falls National Park, the Budongo Forest and Kaniyo Pabidi area holds colobus as well as chimpanzees. Colobus also live in Maramagambo Forest in Queen Elizabeth National Park, on the slopes of Mount Elgon and in Mabira Forest on the road to Jinja.
What makes colobus different
Colobus are leaf-eaters. Their complex, multi-chambered stomachs ferment tough leaves, much as a cow’s does, which lets them live on foliage that other monkeys cannot digest. They have no thumb, or just a tiny stub, an adaptation for hooking branches as they swing; the name colobus comes from a Greek word meaning mutilated. Groups are usually small, with one adult male, several females and young. Newborns are pure white and darken over the first few months.
Tips for seeing and photographing them
Mornings and late afternoons are best, when colobus are feeding and moving. Look up into the canopy along forest edges and rivers, and listen for the male’s deep, rolling croak. Binoculars help, and a telephoto lens of 300 mm or more is useful because they are often high in the trees. Many visitors combine colobus with chimpanzee tracking; see our guide to the best places to see chimpanzees.
Frequently asked questions
Kibale Forest and the nearby Bigodi Wetland, where both black-and-white and red colobus are common.
Yes. Black-and-white colobus are often seen on gorilla treks and forest walks, especially around Buhoma.
Mainly leaves, which their multi-chambered stomachs ferment, plus some fruit, flowers and seeds.
Yes. The Entebbe Botanical Gardens have resident black-and-white colobus.
