subject: Enrich Your Mind,Know About Gorillas [print this page] Enrich Your Mind,Know About Gorillas Enrich Your Mind,Know About Gorillas
Before you probably have a Gorilla Safari to Uganda,you need to know what gorillas are.They are fascinating animals, capable of showing "human-like" behaviours and emotions such as joy and sadness. They are immensely powerful animals, with the capability of lifting objects humans would find impossible. However this strength along with their intelligence has provided little defence against humans encroaching on and destroying their habitat.
The rainforests of Africa are home to the four subspecies of Gorilla, which are the Western Lowland Gorilla and the Cross River Gorilla in Western Africa along with the Mountain Gorilla and the Eastern Lowland Gorilla in Eastern Africa. It is our seemingly insatiable demand for wood products and the ever increasing need for space to cope with the expanding population that has seen huge swathes of rainforest destroyed and with it, large numbers of the Gorilla population.
The impact of habitat destruction has been compounded by hunting Gorillas have long been perceived as dangerous animals that should be feared. This has caused local people to hunt them in order to protect themselves and their communities. However, this perception couldn't be further from the truth, as gorillas are known for their gentle nature, only becoming dangerous if they feel threatened. Furthermore, poaching has decimated gorilla numbers in recent years. Despite severe penalties against poaching gorillas they are still-hunted for food and body parts, which are prized as trophies.
Genetically, gorillas are very similar to humans, sharing around 95% of our DNA. This means they are susceptible to many of the same ailments as us. They have suffered greatly due to viruses such as Ebola and other diseases such as measles.
The aforementioned are all severe threats to the gorilla's survival and unless drastic action is taken to save the gorilla they face certain extinction in the near future.
For those of you who feel real love for our closest relatives, there is a Gorilla Adoption Scheme and you can always contribute for the survival of these fascinating animals.As you are not only contributing to Gorillas but also to to your self and to the entire tourism industry.
