Meet the Cross River Gorilla

In this blog, I will introduce you to the gorilla gorilla diehli or better known as the cross river gorilla who is on the verge of extinction and needs OUR HELP! 

    The cross-river gorilla is the most threatened subspecies to the western gorilla. The cross river gorilla has similar features to other species of gorillas, but their feet are apparently shorter than the western lowland gorilla. The subspecies was first recorded on video in 2009. Since it is such a shy animal and likes to avoid humans, this clip was groundbreaking. The animals are very wary of humans and avoid all interactions, so capturing them on camera is difficult. Crossrivergorilla.org reports that there are fewer than 300 individuals in the wild, making this subspecies the most endangered of gorillas. Not only this, the cross river gorilla is listed by the IUCN as critically endangered which is the highest-ranking for species that remain in the world.

A cross river gorilla upset with the decline of his species

Cross River gorillas inhabit the lowland montane forests and rainforests of Cameroon and Nigeria. This area spans 3,000 square miles, on the African continent. The cross river gorilla plays an important role in dispersing seeds, letting in light, and shaping plant communities within the forest. Gorillas are described as "umbrella species" to their habitat, meaning, they help protect biodiversity on a large scale. When gorillas eat plants they will disperse those seeds throughout the forests and create places where plants can grow. If this species does extinct, then biodiversity would begin to decrease at a high rate. 

Humans are the main cause of the cross river gorilla's decline in population. The gorilla lives in a region populated by many humans who have destroyed habitat to create fields for agriculture and livestock. Poaching also occurs in the nearby forest which has such extreme effects on this small population of gorillas. If the gorilla disappears in the wild, its predators will have much less food to eat causing a cycle of extinction for the species that this predator preys on.  It will also cause a decline in biodiversity since the gorillas won't be spreading the seeds of various plants and fruits. The gorilla to this ecosystem is like glue holding it together, once they are gone, everything will fall apart.

The current conservation effort to protect these animals is focused on securing the forests that house them. Using a GIS system, a geographer could easily monitor and visualize the habitat use and the progress of conservation activities. This will be beneficial to presenting suitable data to optimize the boundaries of reserves during their creation. This allows geographers to understand the reserved land and defend it from poachers and industrializers.

We must save the Gorillas, it is what Harambe would want. Make your voice heard by asking your lawmakers to continue to support the Great Ape Conservation Fund, which provides money to support several beneficial field projects. Another way you can help is to advocate for the recycling of cell phones and other electronics. Why? There are metals mined from gorilla habitat in the Democratic Republic of Congo that is used in cell phones and other electronics. Committing to recycling your cell phones will help reduce the demand for these metals which ultimately will help protect gorillas and their habitat. Eco-cell is a trusted recycling company that gives back to conservation efforts. Another helpful way to save gorillas is to stop using palm oil and excessive amounts of wood products. Do your research before you purchase products. If they use palm oil, DITCH IT! The easiest and most beneficial way to help save the gorillas is to donate to funds that help protect and save this species. Below are good foundations that you can donate to:

https://gorillafund.org/

https://crossrivergorilla.org/

https://africanconservation.org/project/saving-cross-river-gorillas-from-extinction/

Use your voice before it's too late!