Washington/Bonn,
13 October 2009 - The United Nations Ambassador
for the Year of the Gorilla, Ian Redmond,
has called for the inclusion of gorillas
and elephants, as important components in
African rainforests, in the upcoming climate
negotiations in Copenhagen.
Large mammals, such
as elephants and gorillas, are keystone
species in their relevant ecosystems. Gorillas
act as 'gardeners' in the rainforests of
the Congo Basin, and protecting them helps
prevent loss of flora that are ecologically
dependent on them.
Gorillas are second
only to elephants in the number of seeds
they disperse each day in the forests of
Africa. When eating fruit and seeds, the
seeds pass through their system and are
in this way prepared for germination.
UN Ambassador, Ian Redmond,
who has just returned from a fact-finding
mission across eight African gorilla range
states said: "The gorillas and elephants
of Africa are doing the world a service.
UNEP has just succeeded in its Seven Billion
Tree campaign, but I would estimate that
the apes and elephants of Africa disperse
some seven billion seeds every day! The
full extent of the role they play in maintaining
the health of their forest habitat - a central
component of the Earth's climate regulation
-is still poorly understood."
Fifteen years of armed
conflicts in the Great Lakes region of Africa,
accompanied by illegal exploitation of minerals
to finance militias, led to a sharp increase
in demand for bushmeat. In addition, rapidly
growing urban populations accelerated deforestation
through charcoal production. Consequently,
gorillas and elephants have been poached
in large numbers.
A dramatic decline in
the diversity of vegetation can be observed
in parts of the Kahuzi-Biega National Park
in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
As gorillas declined and elephants vanished
from the montane area, the forest's flora
changed into denser, less diverse vegetation.
Weed-like plants, which were formerly held
in check by elephants and gorillas, have
become much more dominant and are suffocating
trees, thereby accelerating deforestation.
Myrianthus fruit trees, whose seeds had
formerly been dispersed especially by large
mammals, are being killed by the Sericostachys
scandens vines and if this continues may
become increasingly rare.
By building nests, gorillas
break off branches and create gaps in the
forest canopy that allow light through to
the forest floor enabling smaller plants
to grow.
The survival of forests
requires the protection of the animals in
them as well as the trees. In the long term,
deforestation is as much a consequence of
over-hunting as of cutting trees for charcoal
or timber.
Insights gained from
encounters with senior government officials,
ex-militia, park wardens, conservationists,
poachers, loggers and farmers highlight
the need for a comprehensive approach to
conserve rain forests and gorillas in the
Congo Basin.
Supporting existing
national action plans to halt deforestation
of gorilla habitat is one of the major objectives
of the CMS Agreement on the Conservation
of Gorilla and their Habitat during the
Year of the Gorilla campaign.
Notes to Editors:
The Convention on the
Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild
Animals works for the conservation of a
wide array of endangered migratory animals
worldwide through the negotiation and implementation
of agreements and species action plans.
With currently 112 member countries, many
of them in Africa, CMS is a fast-growing
convention with special importance due to
its expertise in the field of migratory
species.
More information is
available at: www.cms.int
The Year of the Gorilla
2009
The Convention on the
Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild
Animals (UNEP/CMS), also known as the Bonn
Convention, declared 2009 the Year of the
Gorilla (YoG). Partners in this campaign
include the Great Apes Survival Partnership
(GRASP), in cooperation with UNEP and UNESCO,
and the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums
(WAZA). The initiative is part of the United
Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable
Development. Its main objective is to raise
funds, awareness and political will to implement
the CMS Agreement on the Conservation of
Gorillas and their Habitats, a legally binding
treaty between gorilla range states.
More information and
a selection of videos on this topic on the
Year of the Gorilla are available at: www.yog2009.org
Ian Redmond OBE, Ambassador, UN Year of
the Gorilla, Chief Consultant, GRASP - UNEP/UNESCO
Great Ape Survival Partnership
Veronika Lenarz, UNEP/CMS Secretariat, Coordinator
UN Year of the Gorilla)
Photo by Ian Redmond
