Race against time to save Congo's apes
source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/aug/31/endangeredspecies.congo?gusrc=rss&feed=env...
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Given the genocidal record of Belgium's King Leopold II in the Congo towards the end of the 19th century, the choice of Emmanuel de Merode - a descendant of Belgian royalty - as director of Africa's oldest national park might raise some eyebrows. But as crisis threatens to overwhelm Virunga National Park, which lies at the epicentre of a war zone, it is Merode's credentials that count rather than past colonial misdeeds.
London-born Merode, a former head of the conservation group Wildlife Direct, is now responsible for the Democratic Republic of Congo's endangered mountain gorilla population, whose plight came to the world's attention last year when photographs of four bullet-ridden carcasses were published. The appointment follows a year which has seen rebel general Laurent Nkunda's army take over the park, swamping it with an estimated 16,000 armed militia.
Last week saw the heaviest fighting between the rebels and government forces for a year, and at the centre of the fighting was the Virunga. A growing demand for bushmeat and other illegal products has led to massive and sustained attacks on the park's wildlife. The hippo population of Lake Edward, once the greatest in the world, has been nearly wiped out. The greatest reserve in Africa, with more mammal, bird and reptile species than any other ecosystem, is in grave peril.*continues*
London-born Merode, a former head of the conservation group Wildlife Direct, is now responsible for the Democratic Republic of Congo's endangered mountain gorilla population, whose plight came to the world's attention last year when photographs of four bullet-ridden carcasses were published. The appointment follows a year which has seen rebel general Laurent Nkunda's army take over the park, swamping it with an estimated 16,000 armed militia.
Last week saw the heaviest fighting between the rebels and government forces for a year, and at the centre of the fighting was the Virunga. A growing demand for bushmeat and other illegal products has led to massive and sustained attacks on the park's wildlife. The hippo population of Lake Edward, once the greatest in the world, has been nearly wiped out. The greatest reserve in Africa, with more mammal, bird and reptile species than any other ecosystem, is in grave peril.*continues*
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metalcookiesxy70
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Save donkey kong and diddy kong from certain destruction!
- 4 years ago
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metalcookiesxy70
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Vierotchka
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Gorillas are our amazing, beautiful and fascinating cousins. We should do everything possible to protect them - we have much to learn from them.
- 4 years ago
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Vierotchka
