Endangered Gorillas
Endangered Gorillas: The Critical List Keeps Growing
As species decrease, the endangered extinction lists continue to grow, and endangered gorillas are climbing the bad list rather quickly over the past 15 years. Saved from extinction due to illegal and immoral poaching during the 19th and early 20th centuries, the gorilla made a comeback and began to flourish and grow through education, conservation, and protection. Poaching still happens, but this activity has become far less acceptable and worthwhile, thanks to the efforts of the African peoples and government. As land encroachment spreads and cuts more deeply into the central forests and mountains of Africa, however, and plantations take president over natural resources, the endangered gorillas are running out of places to go, and are now stricken and threatened with a horribly deadly virus.
Ebola is spreading wildly through the gorilla population, and it is estimated that this deadly disease is responsible for wiping out over 1/3 of the total number of gorillas in Africa. It is also estimated that if we took all of the endangered gorillas in the world and put them together, they may be able to fill two football stadiums. The numbers are depleting rapidly, and there is little to be done by humans in regards to the Ebola virus when there are so many humans in Africa in need of medications and vaccinations. The statistics are not promising at all, and they only seem to get worse as the years wear on, and wear out our precious primates.
There are an estimated 35,000 endangered gorillas in the wild today, and approximately 450 who live in captivity worldwide. There are certain observation programs in place, most of them funded by private agencies from Switzerland and other countries, which are designed to research the ways in which the Ebola virus is spreading from group to group, and determining what can be done to slow the spread and to protect the remaining gorillas from certain extinction. We have some years to figure it out, but the depletion is a perplexing and disconcerting thing to watch for those who are dedicated to the preservation of these amazing and majestic animals.
For more information about endangered gorillas, and what you may be able to do to help with the education and prevention of their plight, your local zoo might be a great place to start. There is much to learn, and a lot of literature that could help you to understand the fall, the rise, and the current situation facing the gorilla and his fellow primates. These are the most closely related mammals to humans, and they have so much yet to teach us, if only we will sit up and pay attention.