Mulengwa 1

Harley Mulengwa
Professor Alexandra Perrone
Class Anthropology 111
21 October 2014
Paper #2, Prompt #1: CONSERVATION OF THE CROSS RIVER GORILLA
When most people think of gorillas, adjectives such a large, powerful and even scary may
come to mind. However, most would not think of the adjective "endangered" when describing
the largest, most powerful of the primates. The sad reality is, the proud gorilla, particularly the
Cross River gorilla (Gorilla gorilla diehli), is just that: critically endangered as a result of the
destruction of their habitat by human involvement. As the World Wide Fund for Nature
illustrates, the entire species population estimated at no more than 300 individuals; the Cross
River gorilla is danger of completely becoming extinct within the next century. Although the
threat of extinction is eminent for the Cross River gorilla, conservation measures are helping to
keep the species thriving to the extent that the threat of further endangerment is kept at
minimum.
Due to having being discovered as a species in 1904 and the difficulty of finding them in
the wild and researching them from birth to death, there has not been a complete study of the
natural history of Cross River gorillas, besides simple surveys of nests (Sarmiento, 15. This is
further enforced by the fact the only known Cross River gorilla in captivity is an adult female
named Nyango of the Limbe Wildlife Center in Cameroon, as the World Conservation Society
reports. Although there is not much research on the birth, life, death and mating rituals of a
Cross River gorilla, there has been plenty of documentation that has recorded subtle differences
between the species and its relatives from the clade of Western Lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla

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gorilla). For example, as the World Wide Fund for Nature reports, of the Western Lowland
gorillas, Cross River gorillas are the smallest in size and have smaller skull and tooth
dimensions; comparisons of cheek tooth surface area between eastern and western gorillas show
Cross River gorillas to have the mean smallest cheek tooth surface area (Sarmiento 26). Cross
River gorillas can be found along the banks of the river they were named after, between the
countries of south-eastern Nigeria and western Cameroon (Nicholas 38). As suggested by a 2003
research of Andrea Taylor and Michael Goldsmith, Cross River gorillas have been observed
living in small groups, with typical nest clusters in Nigeria containing fewer than 8 nests. Cross
River gorillas may have so few nest numbers as a result of having less than 300 individuals as a
species or due to being hunted for bush meat (Nicholas 38) and having their habitats destroyed
by human interactions. This lack of sufficient habitat space, along with few individuals within a
population of gorillas contributes to the problem of inbreeding, as the WWF points out. Lack of
gene flow from extremely small populations spread out among two countries leads to intragroup
mating, decreasing genetic variation of the species as a whole. Although smaller than most
Western Lowland gorillas, Cross River gorillas have a very similar diet due to sharing similar
habitats. Cross River gorillas have been observed consuming the fruits of the Musanga and the
Dacryodes plants, as well as the pith of the Dracaena and the leaves, leaf bases and stalks of the
terrestrial herbs Palisota, Aframomum, Costus and Coleus (Taylor 479). They have also been
seen eating the woody climber Saba florida and the lead stems of the terrestrial aroid Anubias as
well as the leaf bases of Palisota (Taylor 479). Similar results obtained by Denis Ndeloh
Etiendem, and Nikki Tagg in a 2009 study identified 240 gorilla food items from less than 186
species [94trees(51%),53lianas(28%), 34 herbs (18 %), and 5 shrubs (3 %)] from fecal analysis
of Cross River gorillas droppings (Etiendem 1267). Based on the research that indicated a

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majority of the diet of animals is various fruit and plants, it would be reasonable to say that Cross
River Gorillas are herbivorous. As the Cross River gorilla Organization states, Cross River
gorillas have been seen throwing clumps of earth and tree branches at human beings. This
behavior is assumed to have been learned by watching humans do the same thing due to the close
proximity some groups have with humans and is indicative of the usage of simple tools, like how
most great apes are able to do.
As a result of being labeled as "critically endangered", many conservation efforts have
been initiated to save the Cross River gorilla from becoming the next extinct species. The
Kagwene Gorilla Sanctuary of Cameroon was created in 2008 with the specific purpose of Cross
River gorilla conservation (Nicholas 40). It has been effective in the daily monitoring of the
gorillas within its confines with the goals of capacity building and awareness raising of the
uncertain future of the Cross River gorilla, as Nicholas goes on to state. The Sanctuary is also a
place where research is conducted, most likely research into the everyday lives of the species
since it is in close contact with individual gorillas and would have a good chance to observe
them in depth. Other Cross River gorilla conservation organizations include the Wildlife
Conservation Society and the World Wildlife Foundation. Like the Kagwene Gorilla Sanctuary,
both organizations contribute to the spreading of awareness of the endangerment of Cross River
gorillas, however, each takes different approaches to the conservation of the species. The
Wildlife Conservation Society has helped create Takamanda National Park, which protects about
a third of the entire species population. At the National Park, research on how the gorilla
populations use their limited habitat is conducted, with the goals of further understanding the
differences between gorilla species. The WCS also has been very effective in working with local
populations of people by creating outreach programs that promote coexistence with the gorillas.

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One final conservation project that the WCS has created is the "Keeping Bushmeat off the Rails
in Cameroon", where the organization advocated for the end of hunting of gorillas for the
purpose of selling bushmeat. The World Wildlife Fund for Nature is similar to the WCS in the
sense that they are both non-government organizations promoting the conservation of
endangered species. Similarly, the WWF has also worked with local people, in this instance
logging companies and the Cameroon Ministry of Forest and Wildlife to ensure that the Cross
River gorilla continues to have sustainable management of their limited habitats. At the same
time, the WWF also advocated against poaching as well as researches the ecology, distribution
and population biology of Cross River gorillas.
The Cross River gorilla is regarded as the worlds rarest great ape due to the extremely
low population of no more than 300 individuals. This fact, along with the knowledge of the
species solemnly being found in the forests between Nigeria and Cameroon, as well as a the
problem of inbreeding due to lack of contact between populations contributes to decreased
genetic variation within the species and is a factor in the labeling of the Cross River gorilla as a
critically endangered species. Add the other problems the Cross River gorillas face from human
beings hunting them for bushmeat or encroaching on their already limited habitats with the goals
of farming and logging and it sounds like a recipe for disaster for the great apes that already had
an uncertain future. As dire as the situation sounds for the Cross River gorilla, there is hope
which lies in conservation groups such as the WWF, the WCS and various sanctuaries, reserves
and parks within their home range, all of which have advocated for the conservation and research
of the species. Cross River gorillas may currently be critically endangered, however, with the
assistance of conservation groups, the species as a whole has a better chance of survival.

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Work Cited
Editors of Cross River Gorilla Organization. "Socio-ecology and Behaviour." Cross River
Gorilla. Cross River Gorilla Organization, 2014. Web. 20 Oct. 2014.
<http://www.crossrivergorilla.org/index.php/en/species-profile/socio-ecology-abehaviour>.
Editors of Wildlife Conservation Society. "Cross River Gorilla." Cross River Gorilla. Wildlife
Conservation Society, n.d. Web. 20 Oct. 2014.
<http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wcs.org%2Fsaving-wildlife%2Fgreat-apes%2Fcross-rivergorilla.aspx>.
Editors of World Wide Fund for Nature. "Cross River Gorilla." World Wide Fund for Nature Cross River Gorilla. World Wide Fund for Nature, n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2014.
<http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/endangered_species/great_apes/gorillas/cross_river_
gorilla/>.
Etiendem, Denis Ndeloh, and Nikki Tagg. "Feeding Ecology Of Cross River Gorillas (Gorilla
Gorilla Diehli) At Mawambi Hills: The Influence Of Resource Seasonality."
International Journal Of Primatology 34.6 (2013): 1261-1280. Academic Search
Premier. Web. 18 Oct. 2014.
<http://link.springer.com.mantis.csuchico.edu/article/10.1007/s10764-013-9739-z>
Lewis, Matthew. "Cross River Gorilla." WorldWildlife.org. World Wildlife Fund, n.d. Web. 11
Oct. 2014. <http://www.worldwildlife.org/species/cross-river-gorilla>.

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Nicholas, Aaron, et al. "Cross River Gorilla."

<http://scholar.googleusercontent.com/scholar?q=cache:qMMeMkvnXyQJ:scholar.googl
e.com/+cross+river+gorilla&hl=en&as_sdt=0,5>
Sarmiento, Esteban E., and John F. Oates. "The Cross River Gorillas: A Distinct Subspecies,
Gorilla Gorilla Diehli Matschie 1904." American Museum Novitates 3304 (n.d.): 1-55.
Biological Abstracts 1969 - Present. Web. 18 Oct. 2014.
<http://digitallibrary.amnh.org/dspace/handle/2246/2958>
Taylor, Andrea B., and Michele L. Goldsmith. Gorilla Biology: A Multidisciplinary Perspective.
Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2003. Print.
<http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=d8d36DamYYIC&oi=fnd&pg=PA472&
dq=cross+river+gorilla&ots=Ta4npx3N3C&sig=8U-47UFXed1g7mxJVmkGRbbUyA#v=onepage&q=cross%20river%20gorilla&f=false>