Mask characters include Balinga, the Fulani woman; "katre", the hyena; "nyaka", the small antelope; Wan pelega, the large antelope, and many others. Masks from all three areas appear at annual public festivals such as International Art & Craft Fair ("Salon international de l’Artisanat de Ouagadougou" or SIAO), Week of the Culture, and the Atypical Nights of Koudougou ("Les Nuits Atypiques de Koudougou"). Each Nyonyose family has its own mask, and they are charged with protecting the masks to this day. Masks are very sacred and are a link to the spirits of ancestors and of nature.