It is thought that between global warming and habitat loss, 90% of the remaining great ape range will be lost – potentially as early as 2050!
Wild Bonobo resting in a tree Photo taken by Alexander Georgiev
The loss of these rainforests will make climate change mitigation far harder, and I do not wish for my grandchildren to grow up in a world where there is no such thing as a large rainforest. As elsewhere, the loss of the apex species such as great apes both makes conservation harder, and imperils the ecosystem as a whole, as less visitors come so there is less money for protection.
Chimpanzees and bonobos look very similar to the untrained eye. Indeed, in the past it was not uncommon for them to be housed together, at least until the keeper saw the bonobo getting beaten over and over again.
Liberia is a country in west Africa. It still has large tracts of intact rainforest, however until recently these areas have not been scientifically thoroughly surveyed,
The latest move by Brazil’s president, while expected, goes against all of Brazil’s past agreements. Indigenous lands were given back- they are not a gift from the Brazilian government. Indigenous people have lived in the Brazilian rainforest for millennia longer than Europeans have been in South America.
Recent census of the Mountain gorillas between the two remaining areas of habitat counted 1063, a number that has risen from perhaps only 350 in the 1980s. The idea of a critically endangered growing by 300% in population size in only 40 years is incredible.
The bushmeat trade is not a nice industry. As a means of feeding your family in the past it worked – there were far fewer people and therefore the pressure on the wild ecosystem was small.
One of the most endangered subspecies of great is the Nigerian Cameroon chimpanzee. Currently between 3500 and 9000 of these chimpanzees remain in the wild. As with most other primate threatened species the reason for the problem is the reduction in the amount of habitat they have: their forest has been cut down.
The fact that there is such a wide range in estimates of the wild population shows the lack of research into this subspecies, as with many others we are severely endangering wild populations before we even know much about them.
Much of the trespassing into this reserve is for marijuana cultivation. Generally these reserves are setup to carefully manage resources rather than to specifically protect them from destruction, so the upgrading of this protected area should be very good for its future management. As in other national parks while the the chimpanzees are the flagship species that is being protected the fact that the forest they live in will not be cut down me and the saving of many other species that share the same ecosystem.
A survey of a neighbouring States forest reserves last year suggested a 60% reduction in the chimpanzee numbers since the year 2000. This is clearly unsustainable, and given the slow reproduction of chimpanzees it could take a long time to get back to where it was assuming all pressures on this population stop now.
There is already firm moves to to get the agreement from the community surrounding the park so that they can be employed as eco guards. However if well managed and sensible facilities are put in place this could be be the means of improving the standard of living for all these communities in a relatively short period of time. Sustainable tourism could bring in useful funds for the Protection of this forest and the people who rely on it.
