Back From The Brink, Mountain Gorilla

“After a dramatic decline in numbers following their scientific discovery in 1902, dedicated conservation initiatives have ensured that mountain gorilla numbers are now slowly increasing.”  Mountain Gorillas have had “to endure hunting, forest destruction, trapping of their infacts for an illegal ‘pet' trade, horrific injuries caused by snares and periods of armed conflict around them. Byt he 1980s, maybe 500 survived and their prospects looked bleak. Protected, when military conflicts have allowed, in four national parks in Rwanda, Uganda and the Democraitc Republic of Congo, by 2011 their numbers had risen to 880 and seem set to rise further. In the front line of their protection are local rangers, several of whom have lost their lives.”