 A Western Lowland Gorilla
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Dec. 29, 2003 — A South African animal welfare group recently condemned a plan by the Malaysian government to send four gorillas illegally smuggled out of West Africa to Pretoria Zoo.
Marcelle Meredith, the executive director of South Africa's National Council of Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NSPCA) said it was imperative for the gorillas to be returned to their country of origin.
"We believe that the gorillas now known as the 'Taiping Four' must be returned to their country of origin, Cameroon," she said in a statement to the SAPA news agency.
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"The NSPCA opposes any option to relocate them to South Africa."
The four gorillas were smuggled from Cameroon to Nigeria and exported via South Africa on fraudulent captive-born documents to Taiping Zoo in Malaysia.
The Malaysian government is reported to have claimed that it was tricked into signing a trade permit. On realizing their error, the government confiscated the gorillas from Taiping Zoo.
The Malaysian government is said to believe that the gorillas would struggle to survive if returned to the wild, and that Pretoria Zoo is best equipped to care for them.
The International Primate Protection League said the gorillas should be sent to Limbe Wildlife Center in Cameroon — a center for gorillas rescued from trade.
NSPCA spokesman Rick Allan said that this was what the Cameroon government wanted.
"South Africa has no native gorillas," Allan pointed out.
He said five gorillas had already died at Pretoria Zoo, which currently had only one gorilla.
Willie Labuschagne, the director of Pretoria Zoo, defended the plan, saying his zoo was the best place for the primates, who would be killed if let out into the wild.
"The National Zoological Gardens (in Pretoria) is, weight by weight, far more advanced and professional than the Limbe Wildlife Center. It is really not comparing apples with apples," he told AFP earlier this year.
He said that about one million rand ($146,000) had been made available to upgrade the gorilla enclosure at the zoo.
"The present bush meat situation in Africa is horrendous. (The gorillas) don't have a great life expectancy if they go back into the wild," he said.
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Name: Western Lowland Gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla)
Primary Classification: Hominidae (Chimpanzees, Gorillas, Orangutans, and Humans) Location: Western Africa, from southern Nigeria to the Congo River. Habitat: Tropical rainforest. Diet: Fruit, shoots, bulbs, a little tree bark, and leaves. Size: Up to 6 ft in length and 450 lbs in weight. Description: Short, thin, black hair; hairless face; broad chest; muscular neck; prominent brow; flared nostrils; wide, large skull Cool Facts: They recognize each other by their faces and body shapes — each individual has a unique nose print. They are very intelligent and have been taught sign language; the most famous example is Koko, a 31-year-old female with a working vocabulary of over 1,000 signs. Conservation Status: Endangered Major Threats: Deforestation, hunting and trophy poaching. What Can I Do?: Visit the The Gorilla Foundation and WWF's Western Gorilla page for information on how you can help. |
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