Research Article |
Corresponding author: Rhiannon Schultz ( rhiannonschultz@yahoo.com ) Academic editor: Josef Settele
© 2016 Rhiannon Schultz.
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Citation:
Schultz R (2016) Killer Conservation: the implications of disease on gorilla conservation. BioRisk 11: 1-11. https://doi.org/10.3897/biorisk.11.9941
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Human intrigue with the natural world has led to a boom in nature-oriented ecotourism and research endeavors. Some of these projects and programs focus on viewing or studying endangered wildlife, but can have negative implications on wild animal health. Human contact with sensitive habitat and wildlife presents a unique opportunity for the transmission of interspecies disease, which can have traumatic effects on the conservation of endangered species. Nonhuman primates have a relatively high risk of contracting disease from visiting tourists and researchers due to their genetic similarity to humans. Local people living in and around sensitive habitats also pose a potential threat of disease transmission. There are some protocols in place to help alleviate interspecies disease transmission, but many of these protocols are centered on protecting humans rather than nonhuman primates. Using Mountain gorillas as an example, this paper examines the literature and research regarding Mountain gorilla health and welfare in the wild. Drawing on the possible shortcomings of current protocols and the potential health risks of these issues, this paper suggests some avenues for further research and pushes for the development of stronger methods for preventing interspecies disease transmission.
Mountain gorilla, gorillas, great apes, disease transmission, zoonotic disease, primate conservation
Humans seem to be infatuated with the extraordinary, especially when it pertains to wildlife. This intrigue drives us to want to get a closer look, to study nature intently, and to strive to understand the natural world on a new level. This drive to be closer has led to an emerging conservation concern that poses a threat to the safety and wellbeing of wild animals. With the dramatic decrease in wild animal population numbers, especially those populations that are already endangered, the desire to observe these animals in person before they are gone has led to a boom of research endeavors and the growth of the ecotourism industry (
According to the IUCN Redlist (2008) the order Primates claims the highest proportion of endangered species within the entire class of Mammalia. Gorillas are one of the most endangered primates, with one of the species, Gorilla beringei, being classified as Endangered, and the other species, Gorilla gorilla, being classified as Critically Endangered (
The Mountain gorilla is found in the montane forests of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and Rwanda, and until relatively recently lived a secluded life with minimal direct human contact (
Mountain gorillas, as well as other apes, are especially susceptible to human disease due to their genetic similarity to humans (
The second type of disease transmission is called fecal-oral transmission (
Some diseases and parasites can even infect a Mountain gorilla long after the human carrier has gone (
It is also believed that disease transmission can occur indirectly by habitat alteration (
In addition, when different populations within a species run out of room to remain separate, their territories will begin to overlap. This territory overlap only further proliferates the spread and transmission of disease and has been seen before in the form of massive Ebola fever outbreaks (
Due to their dwindling numbers, the necessity for research and field studies examining the Mountain gorilla remains pertinent (
Another issue with research regarding Mountain gorillas is the need to habituate troops for observation. Habituating gorillas can take 3–24 months and requires daily exposure to humans (
Ecotourism has grown to be one of the foremost revenue sources for conservation work regarding the Mountain gorilla (
Another issue with the rules and policies in place for tourists is enforcement. Often time tourists have paid large sums of money in order to see the gorillas. Because of this, tourists might hide symptoms of illness, break proximity rules in order to get closer to the gorillas, or exhibit other behaviors that might put themselves or gorillas at risk. One study conducted by
The local people living in and around the Mountain gorilla habitat are often overlooked vectors for disease transmission. Local people might stumble across troops in the forest, discard waste where gorillas congregate, or keep domestic animals in propinquity to gorilla habitat (
With the many facets of interspecies disease transmission, how can we possibly protect the Mountain gorillas without destroying them in the process? One advantage that the Mountain gorilla subspecies has over most other wild primate populations is a very successful and active veterinary monitoring and intervention program. Commonly known as the Gorilla Doctors, the veterinarians working with the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project spend countless hours monitoring and treating the gorillas for injury and illness in the wild (Stoinski 2015).
Mountain gorilla trekking and research is also very important to both the species’ survival and the economies of the countries where they reside. Due to their economic and cultural importance, there are already extensive policies and regulations in place to protect gorillas. As discussed earlier, these policies can be difficult to enforce, but that does not mean we should stop trying. Researchers and scientists are the optimal place to start the journey to better conservation practices. Requiring researchers to undergo periodic health screenings, wear protective masks and gloves, and follow strict proximity rules while making observations could help alleviate the risk of disease transmission from researcher to subject. It might also be beneficial to implement a vaccine requirement for incoming researchers, as well as a quarantine period upon their arrival at a new field site (
The tourists that come to see the gorillas are pivotal to their survival, but it is important to regulate their visits. Currently most gorilla trekking companies have strict rules including maintaining a specific distance from the gorillas, burying any feces and/or waste while in the forest, not using flash photography to reduce the stress of visits, and not attending the trek if they are not feeling well (
Tourists can carry novel diseases, have lowered immune responses from the stress of travel, and might have incomplete vaccine histories and/or health records (
Encouraging forest guides to enforce the rules of gorilla trekking by implementing some kind of incentive program for local guides and their families should be investigated as a powerful means of improving cooperation with rule enforcement. Also, providing health screenings and care to forest guides could help eliminate them as a possible vector for disease transmission. Although the initial cost of health checks and screenings might be substantial, this proactive strategy might prevent an even more expensive veterinary reactive strategy to an outbreak of disease. Coupled with a veterinary disease prevention and treatment approach, the improvement of healthcare and regulations of the humans in contact with and surrounding the gorilla habitat may be pivotal to preventing disease and disease transmission in wild gorilla populations.
It may be difficult to ask tourists to wear masks while visiting animals in the wild, and it may be expensive to maintain a veterinary program for wild populations and to improve healthcare systems for local people, but making these improvements could be the key to preventing disease transmission to not only Mountain gorillas but also to other apes. Understanding the risk of interspecies disease transmission as a conservation threat is the first step in forming a strategy for preventing catastrophic disease outbreaks. Taking steps toward changing current protocols and ensuring protocols and regulations are followed should be pursued as an active conservation strategy for wild primate populations. These proactive changes and improvements coupled with the reactive strategy of veterinary care in the wild might make all the difference to primate conservation as a whole.
I would like to thank Miami University and Project Dragonfly for the encouragement and guidance in publishing this paper. I would also like to thank Taylor Wade, Leah Winstead, Andrea Miller, Sarah Sparks, Christen Waddell, and Lori Anderson for their proofreading and suggestions made during the development of this manuscript. Special thanks to Jennifer Tobey, Suzanne Hall, Denise Fleener, and Dr. Mackenzie Bergstrom for your support, advice, and inspiration. This paper was conducted as graduate work for Miami University through the Project Dragonfly program in conjunction with San Diego Zoo Global.