Strengthen our direct conservation activities and field logistics to actively protect gorillas and their rainforest With your financial and other support, Endangered Species International will continue to:ĭirectly patrol rainforests to stop all efforts to hunt endangered animals, with specific focus on gorillas, chimpanzees and forest elephants Īs increasing awareness of local wildlife among students should bode well for future generations, continue vital conservation awareness programs in local communities and schools Despite this promising success in protecting animals and their rainforest habitat, your help is nonetheless needed to continue saving gorillas and many other animals. For the first time since 2013, no gorillas and other endangered species have been killed in our project area. We have trained twenty (20) local hunters who are now field conservationists who conduct gorilla surveys, and monitor and report illegal activities such as deforestation and hunting of protected animals. Estimated Gorilla Population in the District of Kakamoueka, Republic of Congo (ESI study results, 2013) With the support of ESI, the local cooperative has developed small scale eco-tourism activities, conducted awareness seminars and materials on gorilla conservation, monitored hunting activities, protected gorillas from hunting and any other human disturbances, and implemented alternative sustainable livelihood opportunities for the local populace. By working closely with forest hunters, ESI and others have created a cooperative “Hunters for Gorilla Conservation” program. Even though our project site has been subjected to intense illegal wild-meat hunting and illegal deforestation within the last 20 years, our persistent presence and work in the region has sharply reduced illegal hunting of endangered species. In our 123 km2 study site, and within the scope of our active conservation forest activities, we actively protect endangered western lowland gorillas, forest elephants, mandrills, African dwarf crocodiles, and many other threatened plants and animals. In the Congo, human activities threatening forest animals and their habitats are steadily increasing, placing expanding pressure on gorillas to find suitable locations to settle and protect their bands. Our project area represents a hot spot for biodiversity, and especially for the survival of the gorillas. Due to some protected areas where the habitat is better preserved, our estimated number of gorillas in the area was lower than previously estimated. The estimated density of weaned gorillas was 0.81 individuals per square kilometer in dense forest and zero individuals in degraded forests. Our field study found a total of 58 gorillas within 123 square kilometers (km2) of remote forest in the Republic of Congo (please refer to Table 1). More specifically, our ESI project site is located in a region of the Congo that harbors incredible biodiversity in a preserve for large endangered forest mammals. Despite the low human population density in the Congo, and therefore low level impact of anthropogenic influences, the country experienced a serious decline in its gorilla population mostly as a result of commercial hunting that was facilitated by the development of logging roads and related infrastructure that provided increased access to jungle rainforests. On the critically-endangered list is the western lowland gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) that inhabits Gabon and the Republic of Congo wherein about 80 % of the species reside. The tropical forests of the Congo Basin constitute a uniquely wonderful biodiverse refuge that still holds large numbers of species: of special note are a number of endangered vertebrates that are endemic to the area. As an example of one of our major projects, let us present the following update of our Congo project: We are pledging our lives to do our part in saving the globe from the extinction of animal, plant and other species on a daily basis. Project Update: Saving Endangered Gorillas in the CongoĮndangered Species International (ESI) has many ongoing conservation projects.
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