FREE ESSAY ON MOUNTAIN GORILLAS

MOUNTAIN GORILLAS

Half man and half beast. This is what is usually said about the gorilla. They say that the
gorilla is related to us. You can find mountain gorillas in the Virunga Volcanoes, which
are located on the boundaries of Zaire, Rwanda, and Uganda. The Virungas are 600 miles of
tropical rainforest. You'll find then roaming around 7,800 and 11,000 feet, but at low
elevations. The gorillas live in units. Most of the units consist of about 6-12 members
in it, most of them being related in some way. With each unit, there is a leader, usually
an old silverback, who was a virtual dictator. A silverback male has large canines and he
may weigh 400 pounds. He is the one who decides when to proceed, and when to stop, and
which direction to go. When he sleeps, everyone else is supposed to be sleeping to, and
then he gives a signal to wake up. When the old silverback gets too old, then his eldest
son usually is the one to take over. The females are usually responsible for the nursing
portion in the unit. 
Gorillas are peaceful and tolerant by nature. Whenever two groups meet, they either
ignore each other, or they give each other a grumpy grunt. Sometimes the two groups would
even stay together, and then eventually separate. There are many rumors about gorillas
being very violent, but there are no reports about it. There are times when they have
little mock fights, but there is never any blood shed in them. 
Right now there are not too many mountain gorillas you will find in the Virungas. Their
population is only in the hundreds. In 1960, there was an estimated 450 gorillas still
remaining in two isolated habitats. In a 1981 census, it gave a figure of about 254
gorillas. Right now there is somewhere between 400-450 mountain gorillas that have
survived. 
There are so few of these creatures for many reasons. There are many poachers who kill
the gorillas for their head or hands to sell to tourists as a souvenir, or hunter that
kill them to have a trophy. With so much of this going on, the rangers of the parks so
not think there will be anymore of these gorillas left by the end of the century. 
There have been a few projects and conservation groups made to save this endangered
species. The Washington-based African Wildlife Foundation, started a program in the parks
on park security, to prevent as much poaching. The tourist program also developed
rapidly. They went from 1,352 paid visitors in 1978 to 5,790 in 1984. With the help of
the money from tourism, they were able to start some programs on the conservation of the
mountain gorillas. The basic issues of the groups and programs are human population and
the way land is used.
The future for the gorillas look very bleak. Illegal logging, gold prospecting, and
hunting has become more and more popular where the gorillas live. To assure gorillas a
future will require a dedication that can not just be done through projects or even years
or centuries, but it takes a commitment for the rest of eternity.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Baumgartel, Walter. Up Among the Mountain Gorillas. New York: Hawthorn Books, 1976.
Fossey, Dian. Gorillas in the Mist. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1983.
Patterson, Francine. The Education of Koko. New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1981.
Schaller, George B. Gorilla: Struggle for Survival in the Virungas. New York: Aperture
Book, 1989.
Bibliography
Baumgartel, Walter. Up Among the Mountain Gorillas. New York: Hawthorn Books, 1976.
Fossey, Dian. Gorillas in the Mist. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1983.
Patterson, Francine. The Education of Koko. New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1981.
Schaller, George B. Gorilla: Struggle for Survival in the Virungas. New York: Aperture
Book, 1989.