TheCable

WildAid, a global non-profit organisation, has launched a weeklong campaign to raise awareness about the threats facing Nigeria’s gorillas.

In a statement on Saturday to mark World Gorilla Day, the organisation said the campaign will support Nigeria in protecting the remaining Cross River gorillas, the world’s largest living primates.

According to WildAid, the Cross River gorilla, which lives in the mountainous border area of Nigeria and Cameroon, is Africa’s most threatened ape, with a population estimated at fewer than 300 individuals. The global organisation said there are around 100 living in Nigeria and are found only in three protected areas across the Cross River state: Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary, Mbe mountains and the Okwangwo division of Cross River National Park.

WildAid added that in the last two decades, illegal activities such as bushmeat hunting, logging, expansion of settlements, and agricultural encroachment have continued to destroy their habitats and threaten the survival of the rare Cross River gorilla.

“Humans have pushed Cross River gorillas to the brink of extinction,” Simon Denyer, Africa programme manager for WildAid, said.

“The few who remain are scattered in small groups in rugged terrain, and any deaths or further habitat loss would threaten their very survival.

“It is critically important to protect their remaining sanctuary and protect this important part of Nigeria and Cameroon’s natural heritage.”

The Cross River gorilla has been listed on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) red list as critically endangered. The global population of gorillas stands at around 1,063, found in countries such as Nigeria, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, which is home to over 50 per cent of the gorilla’s global population.

“It is not too late to save Nigeria’s remaining 100 Cross River gorillas, but we need to act now to protect them,” said Kelechukwu Iruoma, WildAid Nigeria Representative. “Individuals and communities need to be enlightened and sensitised on the need to protect our gorillas. We urge the Nigerian government to also update its wildlife laws to combat the threats facing our iconic gorillas.”

WildAid is also calling on all Nigerians to “ Say No to Illegal Bushmeat,” as a way to ease some of those pressures on gorillas and other important species who are trapped and killed in snares set for bushmeat.