Mountain gorilla [Eastern gorilla
(Gorilla beringei)]
Range - Three countries - politically unstable
and war torn.
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=map%20of%20mountain%20g
orillas&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&
um=1&hl=en&biw=1047&bih=485&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=il
http://www.arkive.org/eastern-gorilla/gorilla-beringei/
Check out the world location, zoom in and try the
satellite map. Gorillas live on volcanoes!
Map showing National Parks
The Background
1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmUkATIFJ3c&feature=related
Video Detail of the national park from the Congo (DRC)
2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQEx0ksNGSU&feature=related
Video Steve Leonard visits the mountain gorillas
3. A sequence of four video clips starting with David Attenborough reminiscing, the death of Diane Fossey,
1994 after the war restarting the conservation and more memories.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0LXqW4d9iY&feature=BFa&list=SP7BFF0FF35D184EA5&index=1
4. Article about death of a park ranger 2007
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7549444.stm
Evidence of the population size
Population - What do we really know and what should we do? A very short article
http://articles.cnn.com/2011-01-07/world/africa.gorilla.population_1_mountain-gorilla-population-world-population-speci
es?_s=PM:WORLD
Thanks to conservation efforts, the population of mountain gorillas has increased from 620 individuals in
1989 to around 786 individuals today. This number is likely to be accurate, as these animals have been
intensely monitored since the 1950s.
The Virunga population numbers 480, and lives at altitudes ranging from 2,300 and 4,500 m. Most of these
gorillas range within the southern part of Virunga National Park, DRC, and the Volcanoes National Park,
northern Rwanda, while a few use the Mgahinga National Park, south-western Uganda. The Virunga
population has increased by 14% in the last 12 years, thanks largely to a collaborative effort between WWF
and other conservation agencies to support the three countries in protecting these apes. The Bwindi
population lives at elevations of 1,500 to 2,300 m. A 2006 census recorded 302 individuals. Additionally,
four orphaned mountain gorillas live in a sanctuary in Uganda.
Extreme Conservation
The article is from a scientific journal and seems well argued, carried out and is properly referenced. Have a
look by clicking on the link below.
http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0019788
Extreme conservation is more than habitat protection. This includes actively helping gorillas e.g. medical
treatment for snare injuries and respiratory infections as well as armed guards. The researchers conclude
that extreme conservation has lead to an increase rather than mere stability (no loss or gain) in the
mountain gorilla population.
What do you think?
Counting Gorillas
1. This is an account from a tracker, scroll down to find the part on nest counting
http://www.igcp.org/mountain-gorilla-ambassadors-tracking-the-kwitonda-group/
2. From a journal of popular science
http://www.popsci.com/environment/article/2009-01/fewer-mountain-gorillas-believed
3. From a newspaper
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/wildlife/4306235/DNA-tests-suggest-mountain-gorilla-population-shrunk.ht
ml
There seem to be at least three ways to count mountain gorillas
Count them and know the individuals - not always possible, easier when gorillas are habituated, but is this
normal?
Count their nests and look a faeces
Test the faeces for DNA from rubbed off gut cells to establish individuals - can’t be done in the field
straight away.
Gorilla information and videos to watch
1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_szdrHpswg&feature=related
Mountain gorilla mother carries dead baby for several days
2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwMPqvS4pBQ
Stephen Fry visiting Gorillas
3. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8238897.stm
Stephen Fry visiting Gorillas - same as above but shorter (a back up link)
Write an essay titled:
The effects of increased human pressures on the environment and sustainability
in relation to the Mountain Gorillas (Gorilla beringei).
Use clear sentences.
Please include a bibliography of any sites or books used.
Make sure you have discussed the following:

Background information on the essay title.
(1) What is the history behind the Mountain Gorilla?
(2) Why are they endangered?
(3) Where are Mountain Gorillas place in their ecosystem? What is their niche?
(4) What methods of conservation have taken place in order to try and conserve the Mountain
Gorilla?

What is sustainability? Why is it important to try and conserve the Mountain Gorilla? What
reasons are there to do this? (moral, economic etc)
What responsibility to humans have for the endangerment of the Mountain Gorilla?
