The outlook for eastern Africa’s mountain gorillas is growing brighter, as a recent census released on Dec. 16 shows that the subspecies’ numbers have risen since 2011. Scientists believe there are now at least 1,063 mountain gorillas living in the wild. Tara Stoinski, the CEO and chief scientific officer of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, […]
Tag: Chimpanzee
Petition: Ask Myrtle Beach Safari to Stop Exploiting Animals on Social Media!
Myrtle Beach Safari is under fire for exploiting animals on their social media accounts. A video went viral of one of their chimps scrolling through Instagram. At first glance, it might appear funny or adorable, but it’s actually quite terrible. There are multiple reasons why this kind of post is dangerous. Firstly, it’s the exploitation […]
Chimpanzee Meat Being Served as a Delicacy in the UK and US
If you’re attending a ritzy event in the U.K., pay attention to the meat being served. Some high-end private events in Britain are offering chimpanzee meat as a “delicacy.” That’s bizarre, illegal and dangerous, primate experts say. This isn’t just a U.K. problem, by the way. Customs officials revealed a few weeks ago they found […]
Christmas ad conundrum: Is a palm oil boycott the way to save apes?
A Christmas advertisement deemed too political to air in the U.K. but that has been viewed more than 70 million times online has rekindled the debate about how to save orangutans from going extinct: should consumers boycott products containing palm oil? In one corner is the British supermarket chain Iceland, which earlier this year announced […]
‘Paradise and hell’: the battle to save the forest elephant
Deep in the steamy rainforest of Gabon, a poaching gang’s night-time fire is smouldering and two long elephant tusks lie among the tangled roots. The axe that hacked them off lies nearby. Just after dawn, the insect buzz and bird chatter is suddenly pierced by a whistle blast and camouflaged park guards burst out from […]
Serengeti’s bone crushers
This is another post from my trip to the Serengeti in September. The abundance of prey and predators is a perfect environment for Spotted Hyaenas, which are also known as ‘laughing hyaenas’. The hideous ‘laugh’ is really a signal of submission. Hyaena can also be spelt hyena, but I prefer the former because these are […]
30 years of protecting the mysterious Okapi
The discovery of the elusive okapi, once believed to be a mythical unicorn, was one of the most exciting taxonomic findings of the twentieth century. This mysterious mammal lives deep inside the tropical forests of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and has been known to the western world only since early 1900s. Some […]
Congo Miners Poach At-Risk Animals Because They Have Nothing Else to Eat
A new study finds that small-scale mineral mining in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is a critical factor in illegal poaching of great apes and other wildlife. It’s happening for the saddest, most basic of reasons, too: Those miners are hungry. In fact, the miners have no other source of meat/protein. Sure, […]
