Conservation of Mountain Gorillas is paying off

[Captain Pike]

THE population of mountain gorillas in their main central African habitat has increased by 25 per cent in seven years, regional authorities say.

Source

Apparently numbers in the Virunga Massif national parks is up from 380 to 480.

So good news, but they are not out of danger yet, by any means. The total known world population still stands at just 786

(And yeah I know there is a wayward apostrophe in the title, I noticed it a split second after hitting the post button...)

[Miss Chicken]

It is good to see that there are many conservation programs that are going quite well at the moment - the Mountain Gorilla, the Kakapo, the Black Robin etc

[RJDiogenes]

This is great news. A 25% increase is a pretty solid success, as long as they can keep it up. This goes to show that saving the world may be an uphill battle, but it is not impossible.

[Miss Chicken]

I think one of the most amazing conservation is the story of the Black Robin. It was believed to be extinct and then, in 1980, 5 were found on a very small, windswept island off New Zealand. They were move to a more suitable island. Only one of the five was a breeding female (Old Blue) and it is from her that the current population of 250 are descended.

edited to add - There doesn't seem to be any inbreeding problems probably because the birds has gone through several other (natural) population reductions in the past and this has resulted in any alleles that could cause harmful inbreeding effects being lost.

[RJDiogenes]

Wow, that is amazing. Talk about an evolutionary bottleneck.

[tharpdevenport]

Somewhere, out there ... JAyson is getting really, really excited.

[Miss Chicken]

Here is what I consider to be the best website about the Black Robin.

Actually that website gives a different story than what I said previously. It seems that the population was never thought to be extinct and that the population on the little island was actually known about and the bird was not rediscovered. However the population did get down to 5.

[Captain Pike]

I saw them on Last Chance to See. Remarkable story of survival too.

They are so like a Robin in appearance and behavior, but are completely unrelated.

BTW - thanks RJDiogenes for editing the thread title.

[Mr. Laser Beam]

TharpJingleport wrote:

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Somewhere, out there ... JAyson is getting really, really excited.

Has he met the gorilla his dreams?

[Miss Chicken]

Captain Pike wrote:

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I saw them on Last Chance to See. Remarkable story of survival too.

They are so like a Robin in appearance and behavior, but are completely unrelated.

I was so happy to see them on Last Chance to See. When they announced that they were going to see another rare bird I crossed my fingers hoping it was going to be the Black Robin as I had not seen them featured in any TV program before.

[RJDiogenes]

Miss Chicken wrote:

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Actually that website gives a different story than what I said previously. It seems that the population was never thought to be extinct and that the population on the little island was actually known about and the bird was not rediscovered. However the population did get down to 5.

That's still a remarkable success story. If they can be saved, any endangered species can be saved.

Captain Pike wrote:

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BTW - thanks RJDiogenes for editing the thread title.

No problem.

[Shazam!]

The Black Robin rules.