CBD Habitat has an extensive experience working in sophisticated conservation projects in the Iberian Peninsula and the African continent. One of their unique projects is located in the Bijagós Archipelago, off the coast of Guinea Bissau, Western Africa. Their headquarters there is the Orango Parque Hotel at Orango National Park. Working next to the Instituto de Biodiversidade e Áreas Protegidas of Guinea Bissau, their goal is to ensure the conservation of the natural and cultural wonders of this unique region.
One of the particularities that takes place in the Bijagós Archipelago is an isolated pod of hippopotamuses that have evolved with an extremely unusual type of behavior. Hippos are normally known to be fresh water animals, but on these islands, they go into the sea! The extremely rare Surfing Hippos of Orango National Park; this is one of two places in the world where this phenomenon takes place. And it is very rare to actually see it. We got a one in a life time opportunity and we were fortunate enough to record it!
There’s another extraordinary event that happens on one of its islands, Poilão; a tiny little speck of land of just 2 square kilometres, so incredibly precious for the Bijagos people to consider it a sacred place in their culture. Each year, thousands of critically endangered turtles such as the Green turtle (Chelonia mydas) arrive here, crossing the oceans of our planet to lay their eggs. From August to November, each night, they arrive to the beaches of Poilao, crawl to exhaustion on the sand to a safe spot, and they dig deep holes in the sand where they often lay more than a hundred eggs each. The spectacle is magnificent. We even felt the magical rush of experiencing the hatching of a nest and witnessing the precise moment where hundreds of tiny little turtles came out of the sand, and scurried down the sand into the ocean, avoiding all the hazards in between.
Wild Beauty has a way of striking the witness at its core. This scene reminded us of the raw power of Life, the rarest form of intelligence known in the universe. These unique creatures have roamed our oceans for more than 200 million years, pushing the boundaries of extinction and magnificence.
During our assignment, we also had the privilege of living for a few days next to the Bijagós people, after whom the Archipelago was named after. This is a very unique and isolated culture that has remained untouched by globalization. Their values and ways are purely based on what they experience in their daily life, surrounded by the ocean and pure nature, nothing else. They were kind enough to show us the magnificent islands they call home, and their magical ways of inhabiting Earth. It’s easy to spot authentic Wisdom where there is this amount of beauty and harmony.
We were reminded of what it means to live according to human’s own true nature. The cities we live in have been deprived of what made us beautiful beings. Although we are very civilized, we still have much to learn (or remember). True wisdom lies in the observation of Nature; let’s bring it back into the places we now call home.
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