A body of a dead mountain gorilla was discovered yesterday in a poachers snare at Virunga Massif . The park rangers found the lifeless primate while conducting an anti-poaching patrol.
Veterinarians from the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project (MGVP) performed a post mortem exam on the infant gorilla’s body and found it had an empty stomach and was severely dehydrated, signs suggesting the gorilla may have suffered in the snare for days before dying.
Dr. Mike Cranfield the executive director of MGVP said, “The tragic death of this mountain gorilla at the hands of humans is a blow to all of us who work to protect this critically endangered species.”
Local poachers set snares illegally in the national parks to catch antelope and other forest wildlife for food, but unsuspecting gorillas, especially infants and juveniles, are sometimes fall in the traps.
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