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Saving The Great Apes

By David Bjerklie

Humans, gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos and orangutans are all close biological cousins. But sadly, we haven't treated them like family. These highly intelligent and social creatures are under attack in their homelands in central Africa and Southeast Asia. The apes are still killed for food. They are also being driven out of their habitat by logging, farming, disease and civil wars that rage in their home countries.

But there is now a glimmer of hope for the great apes. On September 9, 23 nations reached an agreement to safeguard apes' natural habitat and work harder to save them

The new agreement is called the Kinshasa Declaration because it was signed in Kinshasa, the capital city of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Most of the nations that signed are in Africa and Asia, where great apes still live in the wild. Wealthier nations, including the U.S., promised to help pay for conservation efforts.

"This landmark agreement is the life-insurance policy great apes so desperately need," Matthew Hatchwell of the Wild-life Conservation Society (WCS) told TFK. "We are extremely happy that these countries have pledged support so that this world treasure can be saved."

Only the Beginning
Can a simple agreement save these species from extinction? It will be an uphill battle. Just last month, a United Nations--sponsored report found that several species of great apes, such as the mountain and Cross River gorillas in Africa and the Sumatran orangutan in Asia, could be extinct in just 25 years.

"Getting governments to publicly declare their commitment is a huge step," James Deutsch of the WCS told TFK, "but these nations have many other priorities, like food and jobs. The great apes live in some of the poorest countries in the world. They will need help and money."

Nearly everyone agrees that the world would be an even poorer place without these extraordinary animals. The nations that signed the agreement must now figure out the best plan to help them survive.

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