Extinct Gorillas. Why are gorillas nearing extinction? Visitors can trek Mountain gorillas in only three countries worldwide: Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Uganda. Rwanda offers gorilla trekking in Volcanoes National Park, the Democratic Republic of the Congo offers it in Virunga National Park, and Uganda offers it in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and mount Mgahinga national park in Uganda.
Vibrant Holiday Safaris highlights some of the reasons mountain gorilla populations declined significantly during the 19th and 20th centuries. Conservation efforts have since increased their numbers, but conservation organizations still classify mountain gorillas as endangered and continue to protect them from ongoing threats.
Why are gorillas getting extinct?
Habitat loss
One of the main reasons gorilla populations are declining is habitat loss. People destroy forests that gorillas have inhabited for many years to create farmland, harvest timber, and support other human activities. As a result, gorillas face increasingly difficult living conditions because they depend heavily on their natural forest habitats and struggle to survive elsewhere.
Disease outbreak
Disease outbreaks such as Ebola have greatly affected gorilla populations worldwide. For example, during the 2002–2003 Ebola outbreak in Congo, Ebola killed 95% of the mountain gorillas in the affected areas. In 1994, a disease outbreak eliminated entire populations of gorillas and chimpanzees in parts of Gabon.
Bush meat
One of the main reasons as to why gorillas are going extinct is the need for bush meat, poachers tend to poach gorillas for monetary purposes. They sell gorilla meat to wealthy folks who think eating gorilla meat is prestigious. Sometimes mountain gorillas are killed in traps set for other animals like small antelopes.
Animal trade
Animal trade is also the main reason for gorillas going extinct; people poach gorillas to illegally sell them to rich people abroad who use them as trophies or as pets for private animal keeping.
Medicinal purposes
Gorillas have also faced population declines because some people believe their body parts possess magical powers. As a result, some traditional healers kill gorillas and use their body parts in their rituals and practices.
Road construction
The contraction of roads in forests and establishment of logging companies in the gorilla habitats as made it easy for poachers to access gorillas and hence more killing of the great apes yet gorillas have a low reproductive system this is likely to make gorillas extinct.
Mountain gorillas can be trekked at USD 800 in Uganda, USD 400 in Congo and USD 1500 in Rwanda.
Uganda also offers the amazing gorilla habituation experience where tourists can spend up to four hours with researchers in the habituation of mountain gorillas at only USD1500.
