Rafiki, the well-known and beloved male gorilla, has been killed due to an increase in illegal activities during the lockdown, according to National Geographic
Poachers have killed a well-known mountain gorilla, delivering a setback to decades-long conservation efforts to pull the subspecies back from the precipice of extinction. After the gorilla went missing and its mutilated body was found, rangers tracked a suspect to a nearby village, where he was allegedly found with bushmeat as well as snares, a spear, and bells to be strapped to the collars of hunting dogs. He admitted that he and three others had been hunting antelope in the park and that he killed Rafiki in self-defense after the animal attacked.
ABC News reports that the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) alleged the men killed Rafiki with a sharp object that penetrated his internal organs after entering through his abdomen.
According to the World Wildlife Fund, with a population of just more than 1,000, mountain gorillas are considered an endangered species and can only be found in East Africa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Uganda.
Gorilla information guide is at Discover Wildlife
Groups working to protect the gorilla include International Gorilla Conservation Programme
