Despite human warfare impinging on their mountain redoubt endangered mountain gorillas are increasing in number. That news is a major success story for conservation. According to Uganda's Wildlife Authority a new census shows 400 living in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, entirely in Uganda. That is up from 302 counted there in 2006. Another 400 live on the Virunga Massif according to a census in 2010. The Virunga Massif encompasses three parks, Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in Uganda, Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda, and Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Civil war is ongoing in the DRC and violent conflict has killed both gorillas and the rangers protecting them.
{"Virguna"}. Despite the unrest, population trends in the Virungas also appear to be increasing
The Bwindi population is made up of 36 families and 16 solitary males. Ten families are habituated to human visitors. Census takers in Bwindi documented night nests and took feces samples in two sweeps in 2011. Genetic testing was done on the fecal samples so the number of individuals and ages could be estimated. Bwindi is named "impenetrable" for good reason. Dense vegetation grows in steep ravines and hillsides. Swamps, rivers and ever present mud made following transects very difficult. Unhabituated gorillas are difficult to see in such lush vegetation
[photo]. But because of concerted efforts by conservationists the census shows conservation is working for this endangered species. Mountain gorillas are the only great ape showing a documented increase in numbers.
Gorillas experience a number of threats from human activity such as poaching and disease transfer. Habitat loss is perhaps the greatest. There is a proposal to begin oil exploration in Virunga National Park which undoubtably increase the number of gorilla deaths. Block V is an oil exploration concession contracted to a consortioum of Soco E&P, Dominion Petroleum and Cohydro. Over 50% of the concession is within park boundaries. The
UK government announced in September that it opposes oil exploration within Virunga National Park. Soco International is based in London. Under the international World Heritage Convention of which DRC is a signatory no oil or mining development of a World Heritage site is allowed. Virunga, the oldest park in Africa (1925), is a World Heritage site (1979).
Currently, exploration activities have been suspended by the Congolese government.
