Russia: £119 Million (British pounds) To Be Spent ‘Cleaning Up’ Russia Of Stray Dogs Ahead Of The World Cup.

Posted on June 13, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)

Above – Zabivaka – the Dog Official symbol of the Russian world cup ??

  • he obviously survived the slaughter !

 

It is predicted that £119 Million will be spent on managing stray dogs this year, as these wandering creatures do not fit the ‘ideal image’ that officials want to portray of Russia for the World Cup.

This week, Russia will host the 2018 World Cup, one of the biggest international sporting events in the world. The country will play host to millions of tourists across the 11 host cities within the Russian Federation. Those visiting will be able to attend matches in Moscow, the capital city, as well as in tourist hubs like St. Petersburg, and lesser known regions like Saransk and Yekaterinburg. Given the significant influx of foreigners scheduled to visit these cities, regional governments have begun the long process of implementing cosmetic changes that would mask the glaring deficiencies in each of their cities. These changes include cleaning the streets, painting old houses and buildings, relocating homeless people, and slaughtering stray animals.

The culling of stray animals has even caused a schism within the Russian population. 1.8 million people signed a petition against the killing of stray animals, while protests are being held in several cities. Even notable Russian actors have spoken out against the campaigns. However, while the brutal slaughter of stray animals has been met with significant domestic and international resistance, those defending the animals continue to fight an uphill battle.

Just like Serbia ???

Killing stray animals is a lucrative business in Russia. Companies compete for municipal contracts that pay a set fee per animal killed. According to reports, Yekaterinburg paid a municipal waste management company over $533,000 in December 2017 to capture more than 4,500 dogs. The Moscow Times reported that the dogs were held up to two weeks before being euthanized.

“There is a lot of money in these contracts, which are often awarded to state-run companies,” Vladimir Burmatov, the head of the State Duma’s ecology and environmental protection committee, told the Moscow Times. “And because these matters are governed by individual municipalities, there is nothing a federal official can do.”

The extermination of stray animals in the months leading up to an international event is not a new practice in Russia. During the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, culling companies used poisoned darts to exterminate animals on the spot, and were well paid for their efforts. This caused an uproar among athletes and tourists visiting the city, as well as international outrage when pictures of the murdered animals went viral. However, the negative publicity did not stop cities from hiring these companies again ahead of the World Cup.

Basya Service LLC is one of the most notorious groups responsible for the culling campaigns over the past five years. The company has been involved in several scandals to do with the violation of animal welfare legislation. In 2012, a lawsuit was filed against the company alleging they used inhumane methods to cull the animals, including injecting them with a drug that causes asphyxiation and painful death. A second case was filed in 2013 by Rostov activists but the court deemed Basya Service innocent.

The most recent incident involving Basya Service LLC took place in February 2018, when an animal activist stumbled upon the carcasses of 20 dead dogs in a ravine near a town in Krasnodar Krai. A Basya Service employee was arrested and he later confessed to poisoning the animals and throwing away their bodies—per the request of his supervisor—in order to reduce costs.

Despite the court filling and controversy surrounding Basya Service LLC, the company continues to work with various municipal governments. In 2018, the company won a contract to capture stray animals in Sochi. As of April 2018, the company has already killed at least 58 animals.

 “We could sit here sniffling all day, but I am working within the framework of our constitution,” Alexei Sorokin, the owner of Basya Service, told the Moscow Times. “Why are we worrying about dogs when we should be worried about people?”

When culling campaigns took place ahead of the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, volunteers began to evacuate animals from the city. Moscow resident Igot Airapetyan made several trips between Moscow and Sochi and managed to evacuate over 100 animals in the process. Many of the animals were able to find new homes. Some even went to tourists and foreign athletes, who adopted them and started Instagram accounts for the animals.

However, when confronted about their brutal campaign to clean up the city’s streets ahead of the Winter Games, the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee denied any wrongdoing.

 “All stray dogs that are found on the Olympic Park are collected by a professional veterinary contractor for the well-being of the people on the Park and the animals themselves,” the Committee said in a statement. “All healthy animals are released following their health check.”

This was followed by the erection of a government-funded animal shelter, which Sochi officials claimed would house the animals until after the games. However, activists saw the shelter as media distraction and an inefficient response that brought little more than cosmetic change. This strategy was repeated ahead of the World Cup in 2018, when deputy prime minister Vitaly Mutko ordered all 11 cities hosting World Cup matches to set up temporary shelters for stray animals. Municipal shelters were built in St. Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Kaliningrad, and Saransk, with foster centres being built in the rest of the cities. Some of these shelters can expect an influx of stray animals ahead of the tournament, many of whom will spend the remainder of their lives in overcrowded cages.

It should be noted that Russia lacks federal legislation that specifically deals with the culling of stray animals and prefers to leave such matters to the regional governments and their allocated budgets. This complicates matter greatly, as each city is in control of their budgetary funds. Therefore, cities will be able to contract companies like Basya Service to eliminate the animals in the most cost-effective manner, even if that is deemed inhumane or against federal policy.

Further, while the Russian government has suggested reactionary measures to temporarily isolate the animals from the influx of tourists, it does not address or resolve the long-term issue facing the country and its stray animals.

According to the World Organization for Animal Health, the capture and culling of stray animals is an ineffective way to deal with stray animals because it does not provide a solution to the uncontrolled breeding of such animals. This organization endorses long-term solutions such as sterilization and vaccinations. However, such programs are not in place in Russia.

 

Moscow once operated under a sterilization program for stray animals between 1998 and 2008.18,000 dogs were reportedly sterilized during that decade, yet the government shut down the project after ruling it “ineffective.” As a result, regional officials continue to believe that population control through culling is the most cost-effective and efficient method to control the stray animals.

Russia’s animal elimination programs are not the only example of inhumane animal treatment during a football event. In April 2018, the Russian Football Federation was criticized for bringing in a circus bear named Tim to entertain the crowd during a third division match between FC Mashuk-KMV Pyatigorsk and FC Angusht Nazran. The bear, who had been restrained with a muzzle over his mouth, was forced to stand on his hind legs and clap to the crowd. He was then given a football in his front paws, which he handed back to the referee.

Despite the public outrage ahead of the 2014 Winter Games, it appears that Russia has not taken any significant steps over the past four years to put an end to the mass slaughtering and abuse of stray animals. As long as local governments are empowered to hire animal contract killers, and as long as mass euthanization continues to be the preferred solution, animals will continue to suffer when Russia hosts any kind of international event.

PETITION:

https://forcechange.com/505244/stop-russia-from-slaughtering-stray-dogs-for-world-cup/?vsmaid=17579&vcid=1121877

 

Other associated articles from around the worlds press:

 

https://deadspin.com/the-world-cup-is-coming-to-russia-which-means-stray-do-1826012469

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jun/04/russia-killing-stray-dogs-world-cup-fifa

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/russia-world-cup-moscow-prostitution-st-petersburg-homeless-dogs-a8390871.html

https://indianexpress.com/article/fifa/fifa-world-cup-2018-two-million-stray-dogs-and-1-4million-purse-to-kill-them-5208778/

http://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/2148430/russia-exterminating-stray-dogs-ahead-world-cup

https://greenerideal.com/news/russian-dogs-captured-transported-away-disposed-world-cup-begins/

 

Filed under: CAMPAIGNS - Global Animal Welfare Issues, GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional, The "Serbian Animals Voice (SAV) ALLIANCE | Leave a comment »

Serbia: 45 Animal Welfare Organisations Now Speak Out In Opposition To Attempted Changes In Fur Farming Policy By Government.

Posted on June 13, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)

45 Serbian welfare organisations now combine to speak out about the proposed changes in the Serbian fur farming laws.

See our old SAV posts:

https://serbiananimalsvoice.com/2018/06/09/serbia-latest-on-belgrade-fur-meeting-respect-for-animals/

https://serbiananimalsvoice.com/2018/06/06/serbia-serbia-animal-welfare-organisations-banned-from-public-sessions-to-consider-keeping-fur-farms/

https://serbiananimalsvoice.com/2018/03/23/serbia-we-now-launch-the-new-petition-with-respect-for-animals-to-ensure-that-serbia-introduces-its-fur-farming-ban-in-2019-your-support-needed-to-do-this/

—————————————————–

http://www.respectforanimals.org/serbia-latest-respect-for-animals-director-makes-the-case-for-fur-farm-ban-in-belgrade/

 

 

 

This is the best translation of the letter that we can get – SAV:

 

Republic of Serbia
National Assembly of Serbia
Nikola Pašića Square 13, Belgrade 11000

Item: support to ban animal animals for production of furs

Honorable sirs,
You will be told by defense law on animal animals 89. Who says it will be held from member 7., attitude 1. Points of 37 of this law, from 1. January 2019.
The Republic of Serbia has a law-enforcement law on animal animals that includes animal protection, and will appear to be based on. By Removing all members of the law, Serbia’s Republic will stop by the shoulder of a 27.-Year-old European countries and take a significant step towards a 27.-Year-old.
In the procedure skin and furs use to 300 different chemical, according to European commission data. It’s a chemical compound that kontaminiraǰu land and public vodovode. That way comes to the utroška of these resources, because it is created by massive surface soil and water. The European Union has been making a major concern for the impact of these compounds in the air, and the air force is marked as a leading problem in the industry’s production of production. Also, the biological waste of animals contains high-end concentration and phosphorus. Gas in the animal junkyard, as well as the burn body of animals, affect the level of air pollution. The European commission has said that the pollution air has been taken care of.
According to data data from the site of a 18-Year-old agency’s website, it can also be used to 18 times more than. Tax-based tax in Serbia is zanemarl̂iv and minoran (biggest farm held by a 300.000-Year-old year-on-year tax, and in Serbia there are only 5 Farm Farms per.
To create a single bunde is killed between 150-200 Chinchilla, which is completely relieved future that there are many alternative natural coats. In terms of captivity, animals who are in charge of fur have no conditions to act in accordance with. They were given a physical response to the joints and bones and the konstanstno have been detailed by extreme fear with a hard-working instinct for escape that has no conditions to survive.
Serbia’s law of Serbia will be among the countries who care about animal animals and environmental environment and health people.

We can definitely not be able to create a quashing or an existing member from a member of 37. Laws.

With Respect,

1. Freedom for animals Belgrade, agent snow milovanović
2. Association for animal protection and development of civil consciousness “Phoenix” Belgrade agent milica ranković
3. LINK PLUS BELGRADE AGENT NATASHA VUKMIROVIĆ
4. Uzzž “friend” UB agent susana goǰković
5. Association for rights and protection of animal orpak kruševac – agent lela bucek
6. Association of citizens of Alpha Belgrade – Agent Jovan Mitrović
7. Hope for animals of riska belgrade agent miles of krivokuća
8. Association,, help of animal-help animals ” legally agent gold korǰenić
9. Animals for animals and nature, Belgrade
10. Nvo ” legally legally radenka živanović
11. Association of citizens of Pro Anima, Belgrade agent mirica
12. Association for protection and real animal “Klempa” Zemun
13. Association to worry about the animals of beta belgrade
14. Association of spaske kraljevo, agent Daniel Jović
15. Epar-Oipa Serbia, subotica, agent slavica mazak bešlić
16. Association to worry about animal timočke krajina beta – (Zaǰečar) – responsible person: miliǰana nikolić
17. Association to worry about animals of timočke beta beta – (Kn̂aževački) – responsible person: tiǰana božinović
18. Felix – Felinološko Society, subotica, agent clear lazic
19. Society for protection of animal-Prizorgo-Bačka Topola Agent: Thomas chest
20. Fans of animals and nature of green paws “, tomaševac Alexandra Radoǰčić
21. Animal Protection Association “Bobby” Upper Milanovac Agent: Vesna Marinkovic
22. Association of citizens of kanis, syrmia mitrovica buyer Adrian and ǰasminka vuča
23. Society for animal protection and nature’s ekolibriǰum dawn dawn kolarski
24. Association of citizens of “Anima Subotica” from subotica, agent željko elesin
25. Association for rights and protection of animal Mia, Belgrade Jelena Zarić, representative
26. Foundation Leviathan, Headmaster Paul bihali
27. Society of around cats / Asylum for cat ‘Zenka’ Belgrade ljubica landeka
28. Association of animal protection
29. Association for animal protection “Jupiter” Rum, rum, legally agent smil̂ana kolund̂ić.
30. Association for protection of rights animals “Buck” Municipality, nadal̂ agent svetlana đorđin
31. Society for animal protection ” ” Agent Pavlović Marianne
32. Association for rights and protection of animal maǰdanpek “Belka” Representative of Igor Janković
33. Association for protection of animal new United States new now CEO: Dinah Đušić
34. Animal Protection Association, pine agent nikola nedel̂ković
35. Association for protection of animal šumadiǰskog regions red paw ” agent radmila filipović
36. Animal Rescue Serbia
37. Company for protection and study bird of Serbia
38. Association of citizens of apatinska plovarica
39. Association of citizens of green vrbas
40. Coalition for life no kill coalition
41. Bc У. of help animals animals
42. Association for animal protection and nature’s best friend, vranje
43. Society for animal protection
44. Society for animal protection and environment of the environment
45 “European initiative 17”, Belgrade

 

 

Република Србија
Народна скупштина Републике Србије
Трг Николе Пашића 13, Београд 11000

Предмет: Подршка забрани узгоја животиња ради производње крзна

Поштовани,
Обраћамо Вам се ради одбране Закона о добробити животиња, конкретно Члана 7., Става 1., тачке 37 која забрањује држање, репродукцију, увоз, извоз и лишавање живота животиње искључиво ради производње крзна и коже и Члана 89. који каже да ће се забрана из Члана 7., Става 1. Тачке 37 овог Закона, примењивати од 1. јануара 2019. године.
Република Србија има напредан Закон о добробити животиња који обухвата заштиту животиња, индиректно се рефлектујући на добробит животне средине. Применом свих чланова Закона, Република Србија ће стати уз раме развијених европских земаља и начинити значајан корак ка придруживању Европској унији у контексту отварања Поглавља 27. Нема јаких аргумената који би били повод за пролонгирање или брисање спорног члана овог Закона .
У процедури штављења коже и крзна користи се и до 300 различитих хемикалија, према подацима Европске комисије. У питању су хемијска једињења која контаминирају земљиште и јавне водоводе. На тај начин долази до утрошка ових ресурса, јер се стварају огромне површине необрадивог земљишта и контаминиране воде. Европска унија је исказала највећу забринутост за утицај испарења ових једињења у ваздух, те се загађеност ваздуха наводи као водећи проблем у индустрији производње крзна. Такође, биолошки отпад животиња садржи високу концентрацију нитрогена и фосфора. Гасови у животињском отпаду, као и спаљивање тела животиња, утичу на степен загађености ваздуха. Европска комисија је утврдила да је загађење ваздуха водећа еколошка брига у процесу штављења коже и крзна.
Према званичним подацима завршних рачуна са сајта Агенције за привредне регистре може уочити и до 18 пута већа добит која је остварена код произвођача крзна од вештачких материјала него код произвођача крзна животиња. Порез на добит који уплаћују произвођачи крзна у Србији је занемарљив и миноран , као и број запослених на фармама које се баве узгојом животиња ради крзна , па не постоји ни економски интерес Републике Србије да се укине забрану. ( Највећа фарма која држи чинчиле годишње уплати око 300.000 динара пореза ,а у Србији постоје само 5 фарми чинчила по званичним записницима ветеринарске инспкеције)
За израду једне бунде сурово се убије између 150-200 чинчила, што је потпуно неоправдано будући да постоје многе алтернативе природном крзну. У условима заточеништва, животиње које се узгајају за крзно немају услове да се понашају у складу са природним нагонима и инстинктима који су својствени њиховој врсти. Развијају им се физички деформитети у зглобовима и костима и констанстно су изложене екстремном страху уз снажно развијен нагон за бег који немају услова да остваре .
Применом Закона Република Србија ће се сврстати међу земље које брину о добробити животиња и животне средине и здравља људи. Тиме се дефинитивно не можемо похвалити укидањем или одлагањем постојеће забране из члана 37. Закона.

С поштовањем,

1.Слобода за животиње Београд , заступник Снежана Миловановић
2.Удружење за заштиту животиња и развој грађанске свести “Феникс” Београд заступник Милица Ранковић
3.Линк плус Београд заступник Наташа Вукмировић
4. УЗЗЖ “Пријатељ” Уб заступник Сузана Гојковић
5.Удружење за права и заштиту животиња ОРПАК Крушевац – заступник Лела Буцек
6.Удружење грађана Алфа Београд – заступник Јована Митровић
7.Нада за животиње Риска Београд заступник Миља Кривокућа
8.Удружење ,,Помоћ животињама-Хелп анималс” Законски заступник Злата Корјенић
9.Солидарно за животиње и природу, Београд, невладина организација заступник Александра Дудић
10.НВО “ЕТИКА” Лозница Законски заступник Раденка Живановић
11.Удружење грађана ПРО АНИМА, Београд заступник Мирица Тома
12.Удружење за заштиту и права животиња “КЛЕМПА” Земун, законски заступник Јелена Драгутиновић.
13.Удружење за бригу о животињама Бета Београд Заступник Јелена Веселинов
14.Удружење Спаске Краљево , Заступник Данијела Јовић
15.ЕПАР-ОИПА Србија, Суботица, заступник Славица Мазак Бешлић
16.Удружење за бригу о животињама Тимочке крајине БЕТА – (Зајечар) – одговорна особа: Милијана Николић
17.Удружење за бригу о животињама Тимочке крајине БЕТА – (књажевачки огранак) – одговорна особа: Тијана Божиновић
18. Felix – Фелинолошко друштво, Суботица, заступник Јасна Лазић
19. Друштво за заштиту животиња-Призорго-Бачка Топола заступник:Тамаш Коша
20. Љубитељи животиња и природе “Зелене шапе”, Томашевац Александра Радојчић
21. Удружење за заштиту животиња “БОБИ” Горњи Милановац Заступник: Весна Маринковић
22. Удружење грађана Канис, Сремска Митровица заступници Адријана Недељковић и Јасминка Вуча
23. Друштво за заштиту животиња и природе Еколибријум заступник Зора Коларски
24. Удружење грађана”Анима Суботица” из Суботице, заступник Жељко Елесин
25. Удружење за права и заштиту животиња МИА, Београд Јелена Зарић, представник
26. Фондација ЛЕВИЈАТАН , управитељ Павле Бихали
27. Друштво љубитеља мачака/Азил за мачке ‘Зенка’Београд Љубица Ландека
28. Удружење за заштиту животиња ‘Псећа срећа, Милан Цветковић, Нишка бања, Ниш
29. Удружење за заштиту животиња “Јупитер” Рума, Рума, законски заступник Смиљана Колунџић.
30. Удружење за заштиту права животиња “БАК”Србобран, Надаљ заступник Светлана Ђорђин
31.Друштво за заштиту животиња “Друид” Алексинац Заступник Павловић Маријана
32. Удружење за права и заштиту животиња Мајданпек “Белка” Представник Игор Јанковић
33. Удружење за заштиту животиња Нови Сад Спанс Нови Сад Председница: Дина Ђушић
34. Удружење за заштиту животиња Борске шапе,Бор заступник Никола Недељковић
35. Удружење за заштиту животиња Шумадијског Региона “Црвена Шапа” Крагујевац заступник Радмила Филиповић
36. Animal Rescue Serbia
37. Друштво за заштиту и проучавање птица Србије
38. Удружење грађана Апатинска пловарица
39. Удружење Грађана Зелени Врбас
40. Коалиција за живот No Kill Coalition
41. П. У. Ж. ПОМОЋ УГРОЖЕНИМ ЖИВОТИЊАМА Велико Градиште
42. Удружење за заштиту животиња и природе Најбољи пријатељ, Врање
43. Друштво за заштиту животиња Алекс Суботица
44. Друштво за заштиту животиња и животне средине ” Храбро срце” Врбас
45„Европска иницијатива 17“, Београд

!!! Important!!! Important!!! Important!!! Just share. 45 United Association against corrupt politics, nepotism and alavosti.

Filed under: CAMPAIGNS - Global Animal Welfare Issues, GENERAL NEWS - International / National / Regional, SERBIA (Central Serbia: Capital - Belgrade) and (Serbia, The "Serbian Animals Voice (SAV) ALLIANCE | Leave a comment »

USA: The Trump Government Attitude Has Abandoned Orcas To A Tragic Fate.

Posted on June 13, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)

SAV comment.  We saw it all in Canada a few days ago when Trump left early and did not even bother to attend the G7 meetings for the day which revolved around global warming and the environment.  As always, he was more interested in promoting himself for the Nobel peace prize (??) than giving a toss about the other living beings on this planet.  Below is yet another revelation of the Trump attitude to wildlife – allowing Orcas to scrape the edge of extinction whilst gratifying in claiming to have ‘done something positive’ with regard Korea.

Narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) is a personality disorder with a long-term pattern of abnormal behavior characterized by exaggerated feelings of self-importance, an excessive need for admiration, and a lack of empathy.[2][3] Those affected often spend a lot of time thinking about achieving power or success, or on their appearance.[3] They often take advantage of the people around them

Starving West Coast orcas are plunging toward extinction.

Young whales, like a two-year-old named Sonic, are dying of severe malnutrition. Sonic was last seen in the fall emaciated and swimming lethargically alongside his mother and father. He disappeared, assumed dead, shortly after.

The Trump government has abandoned these intelligent creatures to a tragic fate.

So the Center’s launched an 11th-hour legal action to save them.

Our fight to save West Coast orcas needs your help. Please — give to the Endangered Species Defense Fund so we have access to the funds we need for a fast, uncompromising fight for our orcas.

Three years ago, in response to a Center petition, the National Marine Fisheries Service agreed to expand orcas’ protections for critical foraging grounds off the West Coast by 2017. But it never followed through on this promise.

It’s infuriating that we have to force the government to do its job. Southern Resident killer whales are one of the most endangered species on the planet, but the Fisheries Service keeps dragging its feet on ensuring they have enough food to survive.

Now, thanks to the agency’s inaction, only 76 of these West Coast orcas are left in existence — a 30-year low. There isn’t a moment to lose. Mother orcas are losing 2 out of 3 of their young.

A planet without these intelligent, graceful creatures is unthinkable. Orcas form lasting social bonds with each other, where everyone cares for the young, sick or injured. Grandparents can live to be up to more than 100 years old, but only if their food source isn’t plundered by corporate profiteers and they’re given safe space in the ocean to thrive.

We’re fighting with everything we’ve got to save these creatures from the tragedy of starvation and extinction. Any delay in saving them is unacceptable.

We’ve got the legal expertise and firepower to bring endangered species like West Coast orcas back from the brink. But we need you with us.

Please give today to our Endangered Species Defense Fund.

For the wild,

Kierán Suckling
Executive Director
Center for Biological Diversity

https://act.biologicaldiversity.org/onlineactions/uH5qk5MA3EaJzYZtsY2siA2?sourceid=1004681&utm_source=appeal&utm_medium=email&emci=6958d95f-8d6d-e811-80c2-00155dc337c6&emdi=90854353-3c6e-e811-80c2-00155dc337c6&ceid=736440&fn=Mark&mn=&ln=Johnson&em=howlingwolfmoon%40blueyonder.co.uk&add1=&ci=&st=&pc=DA12+5JA&hp=&mp=&wp=&ep=&oc=&p=&s=&tknfa=xQltf3xv0zC6y16H7_CddvmxfqUgEWHDz-jdqj3Yev8%3d

 

 

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Good News: Mountain Gorillas Are Making A Comeback!

Posted on June 13, 2018 by Serbian Animals Voice (SAV)

A new survey of the critically endangered mountain gorillas conducted in the Virunga Massif, a mountain range that passes through the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda, showed their numbers have increased about 25 percent since the last census in 2010. Then, there were only 480 gorillas but the most recent survey, conducted between 2015 and 2016, counted 604 gorillas.

When including the gorilla’s only other habitat in the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda, there are now 1,004 mountain gorillas in total.

 

The Virunga Massif has 604 mountain gorillas.

Map of the Virunga Massif, home to 604 mountain gorillas according to the new survey.

Another 400 mountain gorillas live in the Bwindi Impenetrable
National Park, Uganda, also pictured on this map.

Map of the Virunga Massif, home to 604 mountain gorillas according to the new survey.

Another 400 mountain gorillas live in the Bwindi Impenetrable
National Park, Uganda, also pictured on this map.

Conservation efforts help mountain gorilla grow from 300 to 1004

Although it might not sound like much, this is a big win for conservation efforts. In 2008, there were only about 300 adults left across both the Bwindi and Virunga Mountain habitats.

Alison Mollon, Director of Operations for Africa at Fauna & Flora International (FFI), praised her organization’s role in this turnaround, saying “Since FFI first began working to protect mountain gorillas in the 1970s, we have seen a remarkable transformation in the fortunes of this great ape, which at that time was on the very precipice of extinction.”

The conservations efforts have been wide-ranging, numerous, and required the participation of many stakeholders. Some of the strategies to protect the mountain gorilla included regulating tourism to the area, veterinary interventions, NGO collaboration, law enforcement of protections, and the active park rangers who monitored the park daily to remove traps and prevent poaching, just to name a few.

 

 

 

Gorilla Doctor's monitor mountain gorilla's.

Screenshot of Gorilla Doctor’s twitter feed. Gorilla Doctors’ work in the Virunga Massif.

They monitor the mountain gorillas’ health and treat them when they are sick or hurt.

Two doctors, Dr. Gaspard and Dr. Methode, from Gorilla Doctors also participated in the 2015 to 2016 census.

 

The parks’ managers have been especially instrumental in implementing conservation plans. The Director of Virunga National Park, Prince Emmanuel de Merode, and the head of the park’s Air Wing to monitor the park aerially and quickly get to areas that are difficult to reach on foot, Anthony Caere, are hailed for their environmental work preserving the mountain gorilla and its habitat.

“When I first visited the mountain gorillas in 1979, the situation was dire; the number of these remarkable animals was dreadfully small,” the vice president of FFI and a WWF ambassador Sir David Attenborough commented. “It is incredibly heartening therefore to see how the efforts of so many different groups – communities, governments, NGOs – have paid off. The threats to mountain gorillas haven’t disappeared entirely, of course, so now the challenge must be to ensure that these achievements are sustained long into the future.”

 

Survey team spent two years documenting mountain gorillas

To count the gorilla population, 12 teams walked a planned path through the Virguna Massif. The teams made two sweeps, once from October to December 2015 and again from March to May 2016. During their walks, the teams looked for signs of gorillas, illegal activities, and signs of other mammals such as elephants. When a team found droppings or other signs of gorillas, they tracked them. They found three recent nest sites, where they took samples to see how many different gorillas inhabited the nests.

In total, the survey team found 604 individual gorillas living in 41 groups and 14 solitary males.

Although the survey took place 2 years ago, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda didn’t release the results until June of 2018 to give researchers time to analyze the genetic samples.

Conservation efforts must continue to protect the mountain gorilla

“This is fabulous news for mountain gorillas and shows what we can do for wildlife when NGOs, governments and their communities work together,” Margaret Kinnaird, the Wildlife Practice Leader for WWF said, warning that despite the success, “the high number of snares encountered and the numerous other threats they face including climate change indicate that the battle is far from won.”

To continue this progress and increase the gorilla species further, Kinnaird advised that “The three gorilla range countries and their partners must continue to work together to safeguard the Virunga Massif  – not only for the protection of these incredible creatures but also for the welfare of the local people with whom they share the landscape. The mountain gorilla story can be a model for how to restore and maintain our earth’s precious biodiversity.”

 

https://ladyfreethinker.org/good-news-mountain-gorillas-making-comeback/

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