Gorilla quest in Nigeria

Abstract

There had been no news of Nigeria's gorillas for 30 years when in 1987 rumours began to circulate that they survived in the south-east part of the country. At the end of the year the authors conducted a survey in the area and confirmed that gorillas were indeed present. They found evidence of five sub-populations, more or less isolated from each other and living in forests that are increasingly threatened by destruction and where hunting might kill one-and-a-half times as many gorillas as are born each year. Nevertheless, the authors suggest that the future of these attractive animals could be ensured, with adequate control of hunting and the development of gorilla-viewing tourism in the region.