These are gorillas of the Susa group. This is the same group that was studied by Dianne Fossey before her death in 1985 (as described in the movie "Gorillas in the Mist"). One of the older females, Poppy, is still alive and part of the group. The group is the largest that it is possible to visit, with 39 members, and also very unusually has a total of four silverbacks. However, it's also the most remote among the habituated groups in Rwanda; it's an hour drive out of town to the slopes of Mt. Karisimbi where they live, and typically a 3-hour hike to reach them. They're usually found above 3,000 m altitude, which makes it a strenuous climb.
Overall, mountain gorillas are extremely endangered; the 2011 worldwide population estimate is 790 individuals. They only live in southern Uganda, northern Rwanda and eastern Congo (in a single mountain range where these three countries meet). These gorillas are habituated to humans, meaning they've been repeatedly exposed to rangers so that they aren't threatened when people come. However, they're still wild animals.
30 сен 2024
