What a pleasant surprise!

Nature still holds fascinating secrets that have yet to be discovered. Yesterday saw the announcement of the world's smallest known snake, for instance, but today a discovery of greater magnitude has been announced by the Wildlife Conservation Society. According to a recent census there are approximately 125,000 Western gorillas (Gorilla gorilla) in two adjacent areas of northern Congo, more than doubling the number thought to be present previously.

This is certainly welcome news, yet we should not let it lull us into complacency. While the government of Congo is turning one of the studied areas, Ntokou-Pikounda, into a national park there is little money for staff to protect the area. The gorillas have done so well in the area for so long because it is difficult to get to, but the demand for wood from the forests is pushing loggers deeper into what have, until now, been sanctuaries. In fact, parts of the forest in which the censused gorillas live have already been given over to loggers; greater swaths of forest could follow.

It should also be kept in mind that there is another species of gorilla that is at more risk, the mountain gorillas (Gorilla berengei). Last June I wrote about how five of these apes from the Virunga area were murdered, the gorillas often literally caught in crossfires due to the unstable political landscape. Even considering primates in general, a new report out this week states that about 50% of the world's primates are in danger of extinction. Indeed, we are slowly killing off many of our closest living relatives among the mammals, and while the discovery in the Congo should inspire hope it should not lead us to ignore the dire problems facing the world's primates.

[Hat-tip to Zooillogix]