Mountain gorillas under threat from deadly snares and relentless habitat destruction.
Mountain gorillas are one of the world’s most iconic creatures, yet just over 1,000 are left in the wild.
Despite years of tireless work to bring them back from the very brink of extinction, this special species is still hanging on by a thread.
Please donate now and help protect the mountain gorillas last remaining strongholds. With your support, we can ensure these incredible creatures continue down the road to recovery.
£103
would help pay for crucial surveys of mountain gorilla habitat.
£47
would help pay for a GPS unit, to allow community rangers to navigate the forest.
£22
would help pay for equipment for one community ranger, including waterproofs, a backpack and a torch.
£10
would provide a day's rations for a team, allowing them to stay on the move protecting gorillas.
What is the biggest threat to mountain gorillas?
While poaching was traditionally a major threat to mountain gorillas, today this has thankfully become less common. Instead, other threats like accidental snaring pose ongoing and serious dangers. These traps are meant for other animals, but indiscriminately catch any creature unfortunate enough to cross their path, causing immense pain and often proving fatal.
With only 1,000 of these animals left, even a single gorilla lost to a snare is one more than their kind can afford.
Relentless habitat destruction is another major threat. Illegal logging, infrastructure development and oil drilling are seeing many key areas of forest torn down, despite their protected status.
Mountain gorillas also live in what is one of the most densely populated regions in the world, which creates huge potential for disease spillover. Humans and gorillas share 98% of their DNA, making it incredibly easy to transfer deadly diseases including Ebola and Covid-19 to which mountain gorillas have no natural resistance.
How many mountain gorillas are left?
Today, just over 1,000 mountain gorillas are left in the world. While this is an increase from the few hundred alive in the 1970s, they remain in an extremely precarious position.
With your support, we can ensure they do not slide back towards extinction.
A kiosk selling handmade crafts to tourists on the border of the mountain gorillas’ protected area. © Steph Baker / Fauna & Flora
Eco-tourism has been a crucial part of mountain gorillas' survival story. Local people now love and rely on the gorillas for their source of income, leading to an ever-increasing desire to see them protected.
What is Fauna & Flora doing to save mountain gorillas?
Fauna & Flora has been at the forefront of mountain gorilla conservation since 1971, but our work was taken to the next level in 1978 when we set up the Mountain Gorilla Project following a heartfelt plea from Sir David Attenborough.
While this work has seen great results and taken mountain gorilla numbers to over 1,000, it is far from over. We must not let our guard down.
Through your donations, Fauna & Flora can train community wardens to patrol the last remaining mountain gorilla strongholds, removing deadly snares and keeping these incredible creatures safe from harm.
These wardens work tirelessly, patrolling dense jungle and remote habitats that cause their gear to rapidly degrade. It is essential they receive the fresh supplies they need to carry out their work.
What do wardens need?
Wardens need boots, rucksacks and sleeping bags. This gear is essential for patrolling through rough terrain and dense forests, through torrential downpours and blazing hot sun.
We also need to provide these dedicated wardens with good training and funding to pay their wages. It is vital that we ensure they are well prepared to deal with the immense challenges they face in the field on a regular basis.
These wardens cover huge distances on their patrols, removing snares, deterring illegal loggers and safeguarding key mountain gorilla habitats.
Your support is needed to keep community wardens trained and equipped to effectively protecting gorillas and their young.
Why Fauna & Flora?
Fauna & Flora is the world’s oldest international conservation organisation. We have worked in Africa alone for over 100 years, where we’ve built up a huge wealth of knowledge and experience carrying out conservation work in some of the world’s most challenging regions.
If we’re going to save mountain gorillas, our decades of experience working with this species will be utterly indispensable. The connections we have built up working alongside local people and governments, and our understanding of the natural environment are invaluable. But our work is only possible through your support.
Please donate now, and together we could save mountain gorillas.
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