Oct 26 2007
What are the threats to the Mountain Gorillas?
Thank you for your comments. I am glad you like Kadogo too! He really is a wonderful gorilla.
Today I found a house for my wife, 5 children and I at $30 per month. The owner also wants 4 months deposit. This will all be covered for by WildlifeDirect donations. So thank you everyone, very very much. I can tell you also that Diddy will come to Goma with his wife today or tomorrow for her operation. This will cost about $200. I am looking forward to seeing him.
I have also taken pictures of my family and will be posting them soon so you can meet them all.
I keep being asked the same question by lots of different people: What are the threats at the moment to the Mountain Gorillas as a result of the conflict between the army and the rebels?
This is how I see it, right now. Please bear in mind that in times of peace the threats are completely different.
1. Gorillas can get caught in the crossfire between rebels and the army. It is chaos during these times of conflict. And let us not forget that this is how Rugendo and Ndungutse died in 2001 and 1997 respectively.
2. Snares. If a baby Mountain Gorilla is caught in a snare there is no one to save him. So we run a risk of losing the baby. The snares are mainly for antelope, but traps also get baby gorillas. Karema for example, killed in January, had only one hand after being caught in a snare as a baby.
Mambo & Dunia, Mapuwa Family, taken in August. Their fate is unknown.
3. Loss of control. Because we have no control over our Gorilla Sector, we do not know how the gorillas are faring, or if their numbers have changed. There can be births or deaths, that we just don’t know about. With only 700 of this critically endangered species remaining in the world we need to know what is happening.
4. By the same token there can be interactions between Silverbacks. These need to be recorded, and how they have affected the families.
5. Mufabure. We still don’t know where this dead infant found with suspected traffickers came from. Was she taken from a habituated or non-habituated family in the Gorilla Sector? Were any other gorillas killed when she was taken? What of the fate of the other gorilla that we hear has also been taken by the same traffickers?
Kanepo, Dunia & Sebagabo, also from the Mapuwa family, in August
6. Some of the fighters involved in the conflict are not from eastern DR Congo. So they don’t necessarily know what gorillas are. So they can get scared and just shoot because they don’t know what else to do. The Mapuwa family suffered from this about 5 years ago. The army mistook the family for the enemy and shot and killed two gorillas.
7. Finally, people from eastern DR Congo tend not to eat Mountain Gorillas. But some fighters like I said are not from here. So they may think you can eat Mountain Gorillas. And with what happened in January with Karema we don’t know what to think. Judging by the remains we found, it looked like he had been eaten.
Innocent
Technorati : congo, drc, iccn, mikeno, virunga, wildlifedirect
Daily news from the conservation frontline by Innocent and Diddy, and other Congolese rangers risking their lives to save mountain gorillas of the Virunga National Park in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo
Salut Innocent!
My name is Dipesh and I have just started work with Wildlife Direct. I am supporting Samantha with the media and other things. I really look forward to meeting you. I have so much respect for the work you do!
I learn more everyday - thanks yet again! Can you please explain the difference between habituated and non-habituated gorillas - I have heard the expression but have never fully understood. Also, I understand that the Mountain Gorilla population is split between Bwindi and Virunga. Are those in Bwindi in danger from the fighting as well? Please excuse my ignorance if these are obvious questions. The more I know, the more I can pass on!
THANKYOU INNOCENT, FOR THIS INFORMATION. EVERYDAY I CHECK AND JUST HOPE THERE IS GOING TO BE SOME GOOD NEWS, I FEEL DISHEARTENED, SO I CANT START TO THINK HOW EVERYONE OUT THERE FEELS! SOMETHING HAS GOT TO GIVE SOON, I JUST HOPE YOU, EVERYBODY INVOLVED AND THE GORILLAS DON’T SUFFER! TAKE CARE, STAY SAFE, HOPE DIDDY’S WIFE OP GOES WELL, AND YOU AND YOUR FAMILY SETTLE INTO NEW HOME IN GOMA.
Hey y’all: Thanks for laying out the threats to the gorillas during war time, Innocent. I’m also glad to know that you and your family have found a place to live. Are there still rangers at headquarters in Rumangabo?
OK, according to today’s The Washington Post, President Kabila will visit with President Bush today to discuss the war and Nkunda. There isn’t an e-mail address for Bush but you can send messages to comments@whitehouse.gov and to Vice President Cheney (AKA Darth Vader) at vice_president@whitehouse.gov. Maybe a bunch of e-mail messages on the subject of war and gorillas in DR Congo will get a little notice.
I’m going to be on the road in a few hours, traveling north to Atlanta to visit friends for a couple of days. I’ll check in later this evening.
s.
To Debbie, Bristol, UK: Hey Debbie. I highly recommend going back through the Gorilla Protection blog archives and reading about all the many initiatives the rangers undertake and how their patrols work, etc. It’s the easiest way to “catch up.” In the simplest terms, the way I understand habituation, is that the animals are continually exposed to a stimulus, in this case the presence of humans, until they stop responding. The habituated gorilla families in Congo, Rwanda and Uganda are important for eco-tourism because they allow small groups of humans to quietly observe their daily lives.
s.
Innocent - thanks for the update & good to see another photo of Mambo!
Louise & Debbie from UK - feel free to contact me for more info: linda@g4g.co.uk
We are helping the rangers & Wildlife Direct from here in UK & have lots of info to share with you.
Innocent - hope you settle well in your new home!
Thanks Sheryl, I had assumed it was somewhere along those lines - have a safe journey! Linda - I will be in touch!
Thank you Innocent for the update and information that helps us to learn more about these wonderful creatures….I just hate all this can happen to them…this is none of their fault and don’t deserve such treatment………take care! Looking forward to PEACE!!!!!!!
To all my pie sales are faring actually well. I have so far raised 70.00 for the gorillas. I will be a pie baking fool when Iam finally done. I keep pusing for more and there are more to be made….I just wish I could stop all the fighting. It just gets us all nowhere. Innocent to you all stay so safe…steph
Thanks Innocent for the great information regarding threats to the Gorillas right now. It underscores just how desperatly important it is to get back out there to them. I hope that happens very, very soon. Can’t wait to see the pictures of your family. Also, please tell Diddy “Hello” and “Good Luck” regarding his wife’s operation. Sheryl, yes, I will send messages to the white house and Darth (hehhehehe). I’m sure I’ll get the standard reply, but at least I can make a “nuisance” of myself. Stephanie, Great job on the pies! Lisa
I am glad to know you and your family are safe Innocent.
Stephanie: well done with all that cooking! Looking forward to hearing from you.
Stephanie great job on the pie sale and great idea. I’m planning a garage sale next month and I hope I can sell enough stuff to help Wildlife Direct.
Thank you Innocent for the comments. It is really a long list of dangers that our beloved garillas face right now. I just hope that the situation there improve soon and you and the rest of the rangers can reasume the patrols an check on the gorillas and the rest of the wildlife there. It is my best hope that all the gorillas are doing well and safe… take care all of you and thank you for your efforts, …the gorillas need it more than ever.
Dear Innocent. Thank you for the informations and for the photos of the Mapuwa-Family. I have been invaited by the Mapuwa-Family at the 31 July 2007. It was a very happy day for me and I have been so happy that in the first month of the conflict they have been watched by the Rangers.
I hope that the conflict will stop soon and you, your family, the Ranger and all the people in the region will be safe. I am working with young people. The will collecting money for wildlife direct and some teatchers have spoken about the problems in the classes. It’s only a little thing.
Thank you Sheryl from Washington for the White House email addresses. I have sent mine…one to each address, for today. Another tomorrow…
Innocent,
Thank you for the update. Glad to hear you you found a home.
Education is the key!!
~Mary
Gorillas on the Brink was on Animal Planet tonight. It is very emotional. I am sure they will rerun it. I think you can write to POTUS at president@whitehouse.gov. The address was valid during the Clinton abomination of the White House.
Thank you for all you do and I am praying for Peace (and that the gorillas and all of you stay safe).
what kind of gorrilas dont eat bANANAS.
Hello Debbie in UK. The difference between habituated and non-habituated is the following: habituated gorillas tolerate human presence and non-habituated gorillas do not and would be more aggressive towards humans. I will tell you in another post how habituation is done. Diddy
Hello Desirae. I need to know what you mean exactly - but gorillas do eat banana plant, in other words the leaf or the stalk. It is really only gorillas in captivity who eat banana, the fruit. I hope that helps you. Diddy
Hey i absoultey love gorillas their my homedogs….. i also love Brian Kay and peanut butter pie!!!!
WHY ARNT THAY SEEN ANY MORE