When Conrad wrote his famous novel,
Heart of Darkness, the Congo jungle was so wildly impenetrable that some Europeans found the dark, wet forests oppressive and foreboding. The green heart of Africa is still full of surprises even in the 21st Century because extensive tracts of rainforest remain largely unexplored by researchers. One explorer, John Hart, noticed an unusual monkey called "lesula" by Mbole forest dwellers in 2007. His wife Terese
blogged about the distinctive captive male with fascinating eyes in 2008
[photo above]. After contacting primatologists worldwide the conclusion was reached that the lesula monkey
(Cercoipithecus lomamiensis) is new to science. It has been described in
PLoS One Journal. The primate lives in the primary rainforest area of Obenge on the west bank of the Lomami River. It is small and shy so it was infrequently seen by researchers conducting large mammal surveys in the region. A member of the guenon family, it is related to owl face monkeys, but genetically distinct as it probably has been separated from relatives by impassible rivers for millions of years. Although its habitat has so far been spared from logging and mining, the lesula is threatened by the bushmeat trade
[photo right]. The lesula is only the second monkey in Africa to be newly described in twenty-eight years.
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| orphaned juveniles |
Both Harts are attempting to create a new national park that includes Obenge, referred to as TL2 after the three great rivers which border the region about twice the size of Belgium (3,470 mi²). They are underway with establishing the first protected area, Lomami National Park, with the cooperation of the Democratic Republic of Congo and local communities. The region still teams with wildlife, including endangered bonobos
(Pan paniscus) which are closely related to both humans and chimpanzees, due to its remoteness.
