Save the Grauer's Gorilla
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Help fund research and conservation of gorillas
The Grauer's gorilla
Our largest living relative, the Grauer's gorilla, belongs to one of the most critically endangered great ape species. This species, the eastern gorilla (Gorilla beringei), lives exclusively in the rainforests of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, southwestern Uganda and Rwanda. It is subdivided into two subspecies: the Grauer's gorilla, formerly known as the eastern lowland gorilla (Gorilla beringei graueri) with about 3,800 individuals and the mountain gorilla (Gorilla beringei beringei) which counts only about 880 individuals.
All gorilla species are listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. Threats to gorilla survival all over Africa include habitat destruction and poaching for the bushmeat trade. In 2004, a population of several hundred gorillas in the Odzala National Park in the Republic of Congo was essentially wiped out by the Ebola virus, and a 2006 study published in Science concluded that more than 5,000 gorillas may have died in recent outbreaks of the Ebola virus in central Africa.
The Grauer’s gorilla is especially at risk due to the civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In the last 20 years - only a single generation for these gentle giants - about 80% of their population disappeared. Displaced people, armed groups and military organizations use the forests, including formally protected national parks, as shelter and for resources, endangering its inhabitants both indirectly - through deforestation, occupation of habitat and introduction of foreign pathogens - and directly, by killing large animals, including gorillas, for bushmeat. If we do not act now, the Grauer's gorilla will be the first great ape species driven to extinction by humans.
The Project
In cooperation with the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International, the Guschanski Lab (http://www.ieg.uu.se/animal-ecology/Research+groups/guschanski-lab) at Uppsala University, Sweden is working to uncover crucial information about historic changes in population sizes, species distribution ranges, and genetic diversity of the Grauer's gorilla, with the aim to stop the decline and imminent extinction of one of our close relatives. Non-invasive samples of Grauer’s gorilla individuals have been collected during extensive field work periods. By using these contemporary samples and historical (museum) specimens, factors that are responsible for changes in population dynamics can be inferred and used to help direct conservation efforts towards establishing a self-sustaining gorilla population.
How you can help
My name is Peter Niehoff, I am an ecologist trained in Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Protection. I have previously worked in the Democratic Republic of Congo, helping the Tschuapa-Lualaba-Lomami (TL2) Project ( http://www.bonoboincongo.com/) in their goal to protect the endemic and endangered bonobo (Pan paniscus). I am currently raising money to begin a collaborative project with the Guschanski Lab at Uppsala University, which I believe will add to provide crucial information about gorilla genetic diversity and population history. Thus, I need your help to raise funds to cover the expenses associated with this project.
Please donate now, every donation counts.
Photo: Courtesy of Katerina Guschanski
The Grauer's gorilla
Our largest living relative, the Grauer's gorilla, belongs to one of the most critically endangered great ape species. This species, the eastern gorilla (Gorilla beringei), lives exclusively in the rainforests of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, southwestern Uganda and Rwanda. It is subdivided into two subspecies: the Grauer's gorilla, formerly known as the eastern lowland gorilla (Gorilla beringei graueri) with about 3,800 individuals and the mountain gorilla (Gorilla beringei beringei) which counts only about 880 individuals.
All gorilla species are listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. Threats to gorilla survival all over Africa include habitat destruction and poaching for the bushmeat trade. In 2004, a population of several hundred gorillas in the Odzala National Park in the Republic of Congo was essentially wiped out by the Ebola virus, and a 2006 study published in Science concluded that more than 5,000 gorillas may have died in recent outbreaks of the Ebola virus in central Africa.
The Grauer’s gorilla is especially at risk due to the civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In the last 20 years - only a single generation for these gentle giants - about 80% of their population disappeared. Displaced people, armed groups and military organizations use the forests, including formally protected national parks, as shelter and for resources, endangering its inhabitants both indirectly - through deforestation, occupation of habitat and introduction of foreign pathogens - and directly, by killing large animals, including gorillas, for bushmeat. If we do not act now, the Grauer's gorilla will be the first great ape species driven to extinction by humans.
The Project
In cooperation with the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International, the Guschanski Lab (http://www.ieg.uu.se/animal-ecology/Research+groups/guschanski-lab) at Uppsala University, Sweden is working to uncover crucial information about historic changes in population sizes, species distribution ranges, and genetic diversity of the Grauer's gorilla, with the aim to stop the decline and imminent extinction of one of our close relatives. Non-invasive samples of Grauer’s gorilla individuals have been collected during extensive field work periods. By using these contemporary samples and historical (museum) specimens, factors that are responsible for changes in population dynamics can be inferred and used to help direct conservation efforts towards establishing a self-sustaining gorilla population.
How you can help
My name is Peter Niehoff, I am an ecologist trained in Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Protection. I have previously worked in the Democratic Republic of Congo, helping the Tschuapa-Lualaba-Lomami (TL2) Project ( http://www.bonoboincongo.com/) in their goal to protect the endemic and endangered bonobo (Pan paniscus). I am currently raising money to begin a collaborative project with the Guschanski Lab at Uppsala University, which I believe will add to provide crucial information about gorilla genetic diversity and population history. Thus, I need your help to raise funds to cover the expenses associated with this project.
Please donate now, every donation counts.
Photo: Courtesy of Katerina Guschanski
Organizer
Peter-Philip Niehoff
Organizer
Kirchlengern, Nordrhein-Westfalen