CONSERVATIONS NIGERIA

Tag: Cross river gorilla

  • Rare photos of Cross River gorillas inspire hope

    Rare photos of Cross River gorillas inspire hope

    Camera-trap images of a group of rare Cross River gorillas with a number of infants of different ages recently released by the
    Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) is generating a lot of excitement among Nigerians, especially conservation aficionados and stakeholders. For many, it is evidence of hard work and dedication paying off while for others it is an indication of hope for the future.

    Images of the most endangered gorilla subspecies, Gorilla gorilla diehli,  were captured in the Mbe Mountains in Nigeria. The Cross River gorillas number only around 300 individuals and found only in an isolated region along the Nigeria/Cameroon border. In the 1970s, the subspecies were thought to have disappeared, only to be rediscovered about a decade later, following efforts by the Cross River State Government, WCS and the local communities.

    Professor John Oates, lead author of the first Cross River gorilla action plan in 2007 described the recently released camera-trap photos as wonderful. To him, it is a photo of hope.


    • Photo © WCS Nigeria

    • Photo © WCS Nigeria

    • Photo © WCS Nigeria

    • Photo © WCS Nigeria

    • Photo © WCS Nigeria

    • Photo © WCS Nigeria

    • Photo © WCS Nigeria

    • Photo © WCS Nigeria

    • Photo © WCS Nigeria

    • Photo © WCS Nigeria

    “It is wonderful to see images of gorillas from the Mbe Mountains that show so many young animals, indicating that the population there is in good health,” Oates said. 

    Read also: Experts make case for intensified effort in Cross River gorilla conservation

    Cross River gorillas are rarely seen, let alone photographed, even by remote cameras. Previously, camera traps at WCS sites in Cameroon and Nigeria have captured just a few images including one from 2012 in Cameroon’s Kagwene Gorilla Sanctuary showing one member of the group missing a hand likely from snare injury, the WCS indicated in a press release accompanying the photos.

    In the Mbe Mountains and Afi Mountains in Nigeria, camera traps photographed a mother carrying a single infant on her back and lone silverbacks on separate occasions. Those images were obtained in 2013 and on separate occasions since then, but these recent images are the first time that multiple infants have been recorded in the same group.

    Extremely shy of humans due to a long history of persecution, Cross River gorillas live in the most rugged and inaccessible parts of their range. Their presence can be detected mainly by indirect signs such as nests, dung, and feeding trails. They are distributed patchily over a mountainous, forested landscape spanning some 12,000 square kilometers across the transboundary region of Cross River Nigeria and Takmanda-Mone Cameroon.

    Ph02. Photo © WCS Nigeria_Cross River gorilla group including adults and young of different ages Mbe Mountains, Nigeria May 2020.
    Cross River gorilla group including adults and young of different ages Mbe Mountains, Nigeria May 2020.
    Photo: © WCS Nigeria

    Approximately 100 Cross River gorillas live in Nigeria in three contiguous sites in Cross River State – the Okwangwo Division of Cross River National Park (Okwangwo), Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary and the Mbe Mountains community forest.

    The Mbe Mountains forest, home to about a third of the Nigerian gorilla population, provides an important link between Afi Mountain and Okwangwo. It is have been managed jointly by the WCS and the Conservation Association of the Mbe Mountains as a community wildlife sanctuary since 2005.  A team of 16 eco-guards recruited from the surrounding communities, trained and employed by WCS conducts daily law enforcement patrols of the sanctuary to protect gorillas and other wildlife. In addition to protection, WCS works with the local communities to raise awareness of conservation and improve livelihoods.

    Read also: WCS celebrates four years of zero elephant poaching in Yankari

    “It is extremely exciting to see so many young Cross River gorillas – an encouraging indication that these gorillas are now well protected and reproducing successfully, after previous decades of hunting,” said
    Inaoyom Imong, Director of WCS Nigeria’s Cross River Landscape.

    “While hunters in the region may no longer target gorillas, the threat of hunting remains, and we need to continue to improve the effectiveness of our protection efforts.”

    The success recorded in the Mbe Mountains is largely attributable to the strong support and commitment of our local community partners.  Reacting to seeing the gorilla images, the head chief of one of the surrounding villages (Kanyang I), Otu Gabriel Ocha said: “I am very happy to see these wonderful pictures of Cross River gorillas with many babies in our forest.  This shows that our conservation efforts in partnership with WCS are yielding fruits. I hope that we can continue these efforts so that we can pass the heritage to future generations.”

    Chief Damian Aria, Village Head of Wula I, said: “Seeing these photos of Cross River gorillas with many infants makes me very happy because they tell me that the population is increasing.  I feel honored to be part of the efforts that are producing these results and I commend WCS for their support to protect the natural resources God has blessed us with.”

    Otu Bernard A. Eban, Clan Head of Abo Clan, said: “Seeing this today rekindles my hope that our communities will benefit from ecotourism in the future.  We will further strengthen our local laws to protect Cross River gorillas in the Mbe Mountains.  I wish to take this opportunity to appeal to our partners to support us more to find sustainable economic alternatives to bushmeat hunting and other activities that destroy our forest.”

  • Cross River gorilla conservation gets support from US

    Cross River gorilla conservation gets support from US

    Some United States (U.S.) based donors have donated field equipment worth about N4 million and 10 motorcycles to the National Parks Service (NPS), to boost the conservation of Africa’s most threatened apes, the Cross River gorillas.

    The donors are the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) with funds from the Arcus Foundation, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund and the Rainforest Trust.

    READ ALSO: Experts make case for intensified effort in Cross River gorilla conservation

    The donation is aimed at helping to support ranger patrols in the Okwangwo Division of Cross River National Park, a statement issued on Monday by the Country Director of WCS, Nigeria Programme, Andrew Dunn revealed.

    “The equipment also include tents, rucksacks sleeping mats and rain ponchos to allow rangers to camp inside the national park for up to one week and conduct long-distance foot patrols essential for the protection of the endangered species.

    “Three specialised camera-traps were also donated to the National Park Service and WCS is planning to provide specialised training in the use of camera traps in April this year,” Dunn noted.

    READ ALSO: WCS celebrates four years of zero elephant poaching in Yankari

    He added that due to past hunting, it was estimated that only 300 Cross River gorillas survive in the mountains between Nigeria and Cameroon and the most important site for Cross River gorillas in Nigeria was the Okwangwo Division of the Cross River National Park.

    Conservator-General of the NPS, Dr. Ibrahim Goni, commended the WCS for the donation, but urged more support for other parks in the country. Dunn expressed hope that the field equipment would be put to good use adding that additional equipment for the Oban Division of the Cross River National Park would be provided later in the year.

    “The most threatened of all African apes, the Cross River gorilla is listed as critically endangered based on its small population size, their fragmented distribution across a large complex landscape and ongoing threats to their survival from habitat loss and poaching.

    “About 100 Cross River gorillas are found in Nigeria (with an additional 200 in Cameroon). In Nigeria, Cross River gorillas are restricted to Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary, the Mbe Mountains and the Okwangwo Division of Cross River National Park. “The largest and most important of the three sites is the Okwangwo Division of Cross River National Park, managed by the NPS,” the statement added.

  • Experts make case for intensified effort in Cross River gorilla conservation

    Experts make case for intensified effort in Cross River gorilla conservation

    There are only a hand full of Cross River gorillas left in the world, thus conservation experts are calling on local and international stakeholders to save the mammals from extinction.

    This is a summary of thoughts from a two-day workshop funded by the United Stares Fish and Wildlife Service and the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) in Calabar recently. According to conservationists at the workshop, hunting and other such illegal activities have decimated the number of gorillas in the region. It is estimated that only 300 Cross River gorillas survive in the mountains between Nigeria and Cameroun.

    READ ALSO: Conservationists call for end of plastic pollution on World Migratory Birds Day

    In a press statement issued by the Country Director of WCS, Nigeria Programme, Mr. Andrew Dunn, the experts concluded that “the main threats to the survival of the species were identified as hunting and habitat destruction due to farming and logging.”

    In recent years, logging of ebony has become a disturbing activity in the state, adversely affecting the all of the gorilla sites, including Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary, the Mbe Mountains and the Okwangwo Division of Cross River National Park.

    The stakeholders frowned on the continued neglect of Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary, urging the Cross River State Government to ensure that “protection is improved and that it receives the necessary political support.”

    READ ALSO: Sumatran rhino now extinct in Malaysia

    “The most threatened of all African apes, the Cross River gorilla, is listed as ‘Critically Endangered’ based on its small population size, their fragmented distribution across a large complex landscape and ongoing threats to their survival from habitat loss and poaching,” Dunn noted in the statement.

    “Roughly 100 Cross River gorillas are found in Nigeria (with an additional 200 in Cameroun). In Nigeria, Cross River gorillas are restricted to three sites in Cross River State: Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary, the Mbe Mountains and the Okwangwo Division of Cross River National Park. The largest and most important of the three sites is the Okwangwo Division of Cross River National Park, managed by the Nigeria National Park Service.”

    Dr. Inaoyom Imong of the WCS had said, “there is a real crisis facing Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary. There are at least 1,000 illegal farms throughout the sanctuary which are expanding on a daily basis and unless action is taken soon, it is likely that the sanctuary and its gorillas will soon be lost forever. Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary has been neglected for many years and we are calling on the Cross River State Government to urgently prioritise the protection of the sanctuary before it is too late.

    “It was also observed that the enclave communities in the Okwangwo Division of Cross River National Park continue to expand and participants at the workshop felt that their presence is detrimental for the long-term future of the national park. They called on the Federal Government to revisit plans for the voluntary resettlement of the enclaves as soon as possible. Cross River National Park is the richest biodiversity site in the country and recognised as a site of international importance. The gradual decline of such an important national park must be prevented.”Consequently, the participants came out with a “New Conservation Action Plan 2020-2025 to help save Cross River Gorillas: Africa’s Most Threatened Ape.”