The EAZA Ape Campaign

Gorillas, chimpanzees, gibbons and orang-utans are among the most well known and loved creatures on earth, but these iconic animals are under greater threat of extinction than ever before.

October 2010 sees the start of a Europe-wide campaign to raise awareness and help protect endangered ape species, all of which are under threat from hunting, deforestation and disease.

The Ape Campaign aims to make a significant and lasting contribution to the continued survival of apes and their habitats and is being run by the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA), led by the Director of Bristol Zoo Gardens, Dr Bryan Carroll.

Dr Carroll explains: “All apes face increasing pressures on their habitats and almost all are either endangered or critically endangered. Some ape species are on the very brink of extinction and really urgent action is needed. There are fewer than 20 Hainan gibbons surviving in the wild for instance, while there are fewer than 300 Cross River gorillas left.

“We need to ensure the apes survive and thrive not simply because they are iconic and we have a moral obligation to do so, but because tropical forest ecosystems are also essential to humans and apes play a vital role in the ecosystems they inhabit. They help maintain the forest structure and are important seed dispersers for many plant species.” 

One of the biggest threats to the survival of apes is the loss of their forest homes, particularly in Southeast Asia, through clearance for agriculture, urban development and logging, all involving the removal of the trees and other plants which apes need to find food and shelter.

Widespread commercial agriculture and logging is carried out to meet the demands of local people and foreign consumers, but has the potential to destroy ape habitats and the precious tropical ecosystems on which we all depend. Products from commercial agriculture and logging, such as palm oil and teak furniture, has resulted in prime forests being cut down and replaced by vast monocultures of plants such as palm oil and soya, which are used in the manufacture of a wide range of consumer products and biofuels.

In May 2010, the EAZA Ape Campaign, together with MEP Nessa Childers, was successful in getting European Parliament to amend the Food Labeling Directive to ensure that palm oil will always be clearly listed as an ingredient in products. It is through measures such as this that we can help tackle the problems facing these magnificent species, which are in real danger of being lost to extinction.

As well as raising awareness of the threats facing apes in the wild, the EAZA Ape Campaign also aims to raise €1 million (£800,000) for the creation of a lasting EAZA Ape Conservation Fund.

Click here to see a breakdown of what even a small donation of 10 Euros could help the campaign achieve.