By An angry crowd ransacked a chimpanzee research facility in Guinea on Friday following reports that one of the animals had killed an infant, according to the center’s management.
The incident occurred near the Nimba Mountains Nature Reserve, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, where the mutilated body of a child was discovered approximately 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) from the reserve’s boundaries.
Seny Zogba, the infant’s mother, told Reuters she was working in a cassava field when a chimpanzee attacked her and dragged her baby into the forest. This tragic event sparked outrage among local residents, leading to the attack on the research center.
During the assault, the crowd destroyed and set fire to equipment, including drones and computers. Over 200 documents were also reportedly lost in the chaos.
Local ecologist Alidjiou Sylla attributed the increasing frequency of chimpanzee-human encounters to dwindling food supplies within the reserve, forcing the animals to venture beyond protected areas more often. The research center reported six chimpanzee attacks on humans within the reserve since the beginning of the year.
The forests of Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone are home to the largest population of critically endangered western chimpanzees. Their numbers have declined by an estimated 80% between 1990 and 2014, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
In Guinea’s Bossou forest, part of the Nimba Mountains Nature Reserve, only seven chimpanzees remain. The area is in close proximity to subsistence farming communities in the Nzerekore Region.
Chimpanzees hold a respected status in Guinean culture, with locals traditionally offering them food gifts. This practice has sometimes encouraged the animals to venture into human settlements, occasionally resulting in attacks.
The incident highlights the complex challenges of human-wildlife conflict in the region, further complicated by the presence of one of Guinea’s largest iron ore reserves in the Nimba Mountains, raising concerns among environmentalists about the impact of mining on the chimpanzee population.
REUTERS
