The Last Silverback Mountain Gorillas
720 of the world’s last silverback mountain gorillas are fighting desperately for their survival. Filmed in the forests of the Democratic Republic of Congo, this documentary shows how the future existence of the majestic beings depends on this sole patch of land in the mountains, surrounded by a sea of humans.
The dense population that thrives around the habitat of these great apes comes as a consequence of the forest being opened up for coffee plantations and logging. The growth of human communities and villages has posed a huge threat to the mountain gorillas. One important reason is because the gorillas are 99% vegetarian. Most of the food they eat are leaves, bark, and fruits. As the forest slowly disappears to give way to civilization, their source of food is diminished.
Another threat to the silverback mountain gorillas comes from snares left indiscriminately in the forest to catch game. Sometimes the gorillas get arms and legs caught in the snares and this causes mutilation and even death.
Trackers study the dung of the gorillas to get information about the members of the family and the group categories. This also helps them locate their position in the forest in order to study them better and to propose solutions to their rapidly diminishing numbers.
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