Video: Rarest Cross River Gorilla specie caught on camera for the 1st time

by Chi Ibe

 

Photo credit: Wildlife Conservative Society

Researchers estimate that there are only around 250 to 300 Cross River Gorillas on the planet and recently, they were caught on camera for the first time.

This very special video captures reveals the Cross River gorillas live in the mountains on the Cameroon-Nigeria border, it shows eight gorillas traveling through the forest in Cameroon in classic gorilla style.

According to Steve Sanderson, WCS President and CEO, the footage gives people a spectacular view into the hidden world of one of ‘our closest relatives’, which is in dire need of help to survive.

Z6 Mag reported that Christopher Jameson, director of WCS’s Takamanda Mone Landscape Project said the video represents the best images to date of Cross River gorillas, normally shy animals that flee at the slightest hint of human presence. “The footage provides us with our first tantalizing glimpses of Cross River gorillas behaving normally in their environment. A person can study these animals for years and never even catch a glimpse of the gorillas, much less see anything like this,” he said.

In a press release, Dr. James Deutsch, Executive Director for WCS’s Africa Program explained that the Kagwene Gorilla Sanctuary was established in 2008 by the Cameroonian government to protect the Cross River Gorilla. “Spectacular footage such as this, which we’ve never had before for Cross River gorillas, is absolutely vital to inspire local people, the governments of Nigeria and Cameroon, and the global community to care about and to save this unique subspecies. Continued research of this kind will help fine-tune management plans to protect this rarest of apes,” he said in the statement.

The Cross River Gorillas are listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and are one of the 25 most endangered primates.

 Click to watch video here: 

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