Black-and-White Colobus Monkey
Black-and-White Colobus Monkey in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
- Sightings
- Common
- Best Months
- Year-round
- Where
- Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
This Black-and-White Colobus Monkey features a glossy jet-black coat contrasted sharply by a u-shaped long white mantle of fur flowing down its back and a bushy white tail. It lacks thumbs, an adaptation that allows its hands to function like hooks for rapid canopy swinging. They possess a complex, multi-chambered stomach specialized for fermenting and digesting tough, fibrous leaves, which form the bulk of their diet. Because they eat almost nothing but leaves, they live in large troops without competing hard for food.
Common in the canopy at Kibale Forest National Park and Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, black-and-white colobus monkeys move the way acrobats do, launching themselves across ten-meter gaps between trees.
From Our Guides
These stunning Black-and-White Colobus Monkeys are impossible to miss as their long white capes and flowing tails catch the sunlight during leaps across the upper canopy. Lacking thumbs as an evolutionary adaptation for rapid branch-to-branch swinging, they spend nearly all their time in the highest trees, feeding extensively on leaves that their complex stomachs are specially designed to digest.
- What Bwindi Impenetrable National Park Is Known For
Bwindi, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, holds roughly half of the world's remaining 1,000-plus mountain gorillas, spread across four trekking sectors: Buhoma, Ruhija, Rushaga, and Nkuringo. It is also one of Africa's richest birding forests, with more than 350 recorded species, over 20 of them Albertine Rift endemics.
- Best Time to Visit Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Best time to visit is considered the dry windows from June to September and December to February, as they offer firmer trails and lower humidity for optimal gorilla tracking comfort.
However, the rainy months, March to May and September to November, provide total exclusivity, fewer trekkers, lower lodge rates, and shorter treks as gorillas move to lower elevations for food, with the same one-hour gorilla viewing once a family is located.
Last updated October 27, 2026
· Written by Enoch, Huko Safaris
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Local expert: Enoch
Best Months to See Black-and-White Colobus Monkey in Uganda
From our team
Black-and-White Colobus Monkey
For the best photographic capture, track them along the Kanyanchu primate walk trails in Kibale Forest National Park. They are also incredibly easy to spot in the Kanyiyo Pabidi forest sector of Murchison Falls National Park and the riverine fringes of the Kazinga Channel in Queen Elizabeth National Park.
— Enoch, Huko Safaris
Bwindi Impenetrable National Park
Opt for a private flight from Entebbe to Kisoro or Kihihi, rather than taking the long 8-10-hour drive. By landing near the edge of the forest, you completely bypass travel fatigue and arrive fresh, relaxed, and fully energized for your morning trek with the gorillas.
— Enoch, Huko Safaris