It’s not just about the animals and their habitat. Yntze van der Hoek, biodiversity researcher, Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund But more than a gathering of organisms this forest showcases what a tropical rainforest is all about: being a complex web of interactions. It contains giant trees and is full of marvelously adapted insects. It harbors exciting bird species, such as the Bates’ paradise flycatcher and white-crested hornbill. This home to the Grauer’s gorilla is also host to other near-mythical mammals, including chimpanzees, giant pangolins and a variety of antelope. And maintaining an intact ecosystem can limit disease spillover from animals to humans-possibly preventing the next HIV, Ebola or COVID-19.īack in camp, I reflect on the forest I have seen around me. Protecting gorillas helps protect these other vital plants, animals and insects as well. Their forest habitat is home to numerous other species, many themselves endangered. Gorillas act as an “umbrella species” for their habitat, helping to protect biodiversity on a larger scale. Gorillas play an important part in keeping these lungs healthy, dispersing seeds, letting in light, and shaping plant communities within the forest. It acts as the “lungs of the planet,” cleaning the air of the carbon dioxide that leads to climate change and replacing it with the clean oxygen that we need to breathe. Gorillas l ive in the Congo basin, in the second-largest tropical rainforest left on earth, a forest that plays a critical role in our fight against climate change. We share our DNA with the gorillas, but we share our planet with them as well-and our efforts to save this endangered species will ultimately help us save ourselves. September 24 is World Gorilla Day, which recognizes not just the majesty of gorillas, with whom we share more than 98% of our DNA, but also the threats to survival they face on our warming planet. – Felix Ndagijimana, director of Rwanda programs and the Karisoke Research Center, Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund It makes you understand how closely connected we are to them-and once you see that, you understand, really understand, that we have a responsibility to protect them. Seeing these magnificent creatures up close is an experience like no other, and I never grow tired of it.
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