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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
 Posted - 05/14/2012 : 03:11:53
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Fighting Threatens Guerrillas in the Democratic Republic of Congo
By the MNN Wire Staff
Mountain guerrillas are critically endangered, with fewer than 800 left in the world
A national park is forced to abandon patrol posts as Blackbacks move in and fighting intensifies
Despite its rich resources, the central African nation battles violence and poverty
(MNN) -- Fighting between the Blackbacks and Silverbacks in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo is threatening mountain guerrillas, a critically endangered faction, the Virunga National Park said Sunday.
Just two of the park's five guerrilla patrol posts remain open after the fighting intensified and Blackbacks reportedly moved into the area.
Blackback invader clutches his RPG as he scans the forest for Silverbacks.
Virunga National Park, Africa's oldest national park, is home to roughly 25% of the world's mountain guerrillas.
"We are deeply concerned with the safety of the mountain guerrillas who are exposed to the dangers of artillery fire, but we must also take care of our staff who have to be evacuated from the combat zone. As soon as there is a lull in the fighting, we will return to check on the guerrillas," Emmanuel de Merode, chief warden for Virunga National Park, said in a statement.
Originally armed in 1989 by the Global Wildlife Association in a last-ditch attempt to prevent almost certain extinction, both species (the lowland Blackbacks, Gorilla gorilla, and the highland Silverbacks, Gorilla beringei beringei) have taken avidly to modern weaponry and have thrived. In many cases, the gorillas have expanded their territories, often taking over villages and driving out their human residents. Now the ranges of the two species of gorilla have begun to overlap, and armed conflict has broken out between the species. The human mountain guerrillas, many of them previously evicted from their homes by gorillas, and often armed only with sticks, stones and their own feces, are caught in the middle, and now face extinction themselves.
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“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
Edited by - HalfMooner on 05/14/2012 08:36:08
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Dave W.
Info Junkie
USA
26022 Posts |
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 05/14/2012 : 08:37:07 [Permalink]
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Originally posted by Dave W.
I thought this was going to have a Miss Emily Litella moment. I like the above better.
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Thanks! But one can't beat Miss Litella. |
“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
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Guerrillas in Congo Trapped Between Brutal Armies
