Gorillas found

WILDLIFE researchers said yesterday they have discovered 125,000 western lowland gorillas deep in the forests of the Republic of Congo, calling it a major increase in the animal’s estimated population.

The Wildlife Conservation Society, based at New York’s Bronx Zoo, and the Republic of Congo said their census counted the newly discovered gorillas in two areas of the northern part of the country covering 29,000sq km.

Previous estimates, dating to the 1980s, put the number of western lowland gorillas at less than 100,000. But the animals’ numbers were believed to have fallen by at least 50% since then due to hunting and disease, researchers said. The newly discovered gorilla population puts their estimated numbers at between 175,000 to 225,000.