Evolution And History

72 CHAPTER 3 | Living Primates

Globalscape

AFRICA

AUSTRALIA

ANTARCTICA

EUROPE

SOUTH

AMERICA

NORTH

AMERICA

Austin,Texas

Democratic

Republic

of Congo

Uganda

Rwanda

Atlantic

Ocean

Pacific

Ocean

Pacific

Ocean

Indian

Ocean

Arctic

Ocean

ASIA

Gorilla Hand Ashtrays?

Tricia, a 20-year-old from Austin,

Texas, blogs: “At that party did you

meet the guy from South Africa that

looked like an exact replica of Dave

Matthews (only skinnier) who was talk-

ing about gorilla hand ashtrays?”a The

unnamed guy was talking about one of

the many real threats to gorillas in the

wild. With no natural enemies, human

actions alone are responsible for the

shrinking population of gorillas in their

natural habitats in Rwanda, Uganda,

and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Despite conservation work, begun by

the late primatologist Dian Fossey, who

pioneered field studies of the gorillas

in the 1970s, gorilla hand ashtrays

and heads remain coveted souvenirs

for unsavory tourists. A poacher can

sell these body parts and the remaining

bushmeat for a handsome profit.

Today, not only do logging and min-

ing in gorilla habitats destroy these

forests, but roads make it easier for

poachers to access the gorillas. Local

governments of Rwanda and Uganda

in partnership with the Fossey Fund

and the Bush Meat Project have set

up poaching patrols and community

partnerships to protect the endangered

gorillas. Thousands of miles away, Tri-

cia and her friends can also help by re-

cycling their cell phones. The mineral

coltan that is found in cell phones is

mined primarily from gorilla habitats in

the Democratic Republic of Congo. Re-

cycling, as pictured here in a Michigan

cell phone recycling plant, will reduce

the amount of new coltan needed.

Global Twister Encouraging recy-

cling of cell phones and discourag-

ing poaching both will impact gorilla

survival. How would you go about

convincing average cell phone users or

poachers to change their habits or liveli-

hood to protect endangered gorillas?

ahttp://profile.myspace.com/

index.cfm?fuseaction=user.

viewprofile&friendid=40312227. (accessed

July 3, 2006)

© 2005 Jim West/The Image Works©^

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economic development (farming, lumbering, cattle ranch-
ing, rubber tapping), as well as by hunters and trappers who
pursue them for food, trophies, research, or as exotic pets.
Primatologists have long known the devastating effects of
habitat destruction through slash-and-burn agriculture.
Further, it is not just traditional practices, such as the
burning and clearing of tropical forests, that are destroying
primate habitats. War also impacts primate habitats signif-
icantly, even after a war has ended. Hunters may use the

automatic weapons left over from human conflicts in their

pursuit of bushmeat. Also, because monkeys and apes are

so closely related to humans, they are regarded as essential

for biomedical research. While most primates in labora-

tories are bred in captivity, an active trade in live primates

still threatens their local extinction. Globalization also

exerts a profound impact on local conditions. This chap-

ter’s Globalscape illustrates how cell phones are impacting

gorilla habitats and the survival of this species.

© Population Media, http://www.populationmedia.org