Recipes for Survival_English_tcm46-28192

WSPA/APE ALLIANCERECIPES FOR SURVIVALThe magnitude of commercial bonobo hunting is not known, but their meat is openlysold in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo (Thompson-Handler et al, 1995). Thedemand for orphans is much reduced following the exodus of expatriates after rioting in1991, but poor law enforcement during the same period may have invited illegal exportof bonobos, chimpanzees and other endangered species (Thompson et al, 1995).The most recent survey conducted by the Congolese Institute for Nature Conservation(ICCN) and the World Conservation Society (WCS), in conjunction with the CITESprogramme for monitoring the illegal killing of elephants (MIKE) revealed numbers maybe down to 2% of previous levels (Black, 2004). In Salonga NP ‘where bonobos hadpreviously been found’, scientists recorded only indirect evidence of the species (calls,nests, droppings) in a quarter of the surveyed area and at lower densities thanpreviously measured. In contrast, there was abundant evidence of human encroachmentand poaching (Black, 2004). In the only country where bonobos are found, Salonga isthe sole national park within its range. Armed militias have used the dense forests innational parks to hide and they use their munitions to subsist on bush meat, includingbonobos and elephants. The Congolese Institute for Nature Conservation has beenunable to function during the war, which ended in 1996.Although Salonga was established in 1970 to protect bonobos, no sizeable populationshave ever been confirmed. A 1987 survey revealed a group of about 20 (Meder et al,1988, cited by Thompson-Handler et al, 1995) and several other anectdotal sightings exist(d’Huart, 1989, Alers et al, 1989). The civil war suspended surveys, but a one-year studybetween 1989 and 1991 reported just one encounter (Thompson-Handler et al, 1995).Gorillas are present in 10 African countries. Since 2000, the new taxonomy hasregarded Western and Eastern gorillas as separate species.Western Gorilla Gorilla gorillaA frequently published estimate is about 95,000, but this is likely to have declinedsignificantly owing to the bushmeat trade and ebola outbreaks (Walsh et al, 2003).The figure comprises:Western Lowland Gorilla G. g. gorilla: 94,000 (Butynski, 2000)Cross River Gorilla G. g. diehli: 200 – 250 (Oates, pers.com., Butynski, 2000)Eastern Gorilla Gorilla beringeiMountain Gorilla G. b. beringei: Two populations, which some regard as separate subspeciesbut this has not yet been formally described. The Virunga population is nowestimated at up to 380 and the Bwindi population at about 320 individuals.Eastern Lowland Gorilla G. b. graueri: Last census in 1996 gave a figure of 16,900(range 8,660 – 25,499, Hall et al, 1998), but a massive reduction in the population inand around Kahuzi-Biega National Park during the Coltan boom has led to fears of an80 – 90% crash, with perhaps only 2,000 – 3,000 remaining in small, scatteredpopulations (Redmond, 2001, Hayes, 2002). Recent reports from the Dian FosseyGorilla Fund International suggest that some populations may not have declined asmuch as feared, but accurate census data for the Kahuzi-Biega and Kasese Forest(which comprised 86 per cent of the 1996 estimate) is still being gathered by ICCN,with assistance from WCS and the Born Free Foundation.As well as being hunted for bushmeat, there is demand for gorilla hands and skulls,which are valued as trophies and for their supposed witchcraft and medicinal properties(a finger might be tied around a baby’s waist (Redmond, 1989) or ground into a powderand sprinkled into babies’ baths to help them grow strong (Pearce & Ammann, 1995)).Where bushmeat hunting is regular, gorillas are one of the first species to beeradicated (Plumptre et al, 1999).Regional estimates of annual gorilla kills range from 62 in North-east Congo (Kano &Asato, 1994), 400 – 600 in northern Congo (Redmond, 1989,) and 800 in Cameroon(Pearce & Ammann, 1995). More recent estimates for the Congo Basin as a wholesuggest an annual harvest of 4,500 (Marshall et al, 2000).In contrast, the population of mountain gorillas has risen by 17% in the past decadein the Virunga volcanoes, despite civil strife in the region (White, 2002; Kirby, 2004).Two mountain gorillas were killed in Parc National des Volcans, Rwanda, in May 2002.Before that, no such poaching had been recorded since 1985. Meat wasn’t taken, butone infant was missing, and so the presumption is that hunters were looking for babiesto sell (Redmond, 2002). Two further deaths were recorded, and another infantpresumed missing.Orangutans are restricted to the two South-east Asian islands of Borneo (shared byIndonesia and the Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak – orangutans are not foundin Brunei) and Sumatra (part of Indonesia). It has been estimated that in the last 10years, orangutans have lost almost half of their habitat to illegal logging, gold mining,conversion to palm-oil plantations and fires (Marshall et al, 2000) and, unlike the Africangreat apes, this threat is more immediate than that of hunting. Some of the forestdwellingpeople, such as Dayaks, are known to occasionally kill and eat orangutan, butthis has never escalated to a commercial trade. Nonetheless, even a very low huntingpressure leads to a population decline in such a slow-reproducing species. It isnoticeable that orangutans are more likely to survive in Moslem areas, where primatemeat is taboo, than elsewhere.Sumatran Orangutan Pongo abeliiOne estimate in late 2002 was about 3,500 and declining (Wich et al, 2003), downfrom an estimate in 1997 of 12,770 (Rijksen and Meijaard, 1999). The SumatranPRIMATE BUSHMEAT55WSPA/APE ALLIANCE54