Dr. Mark Jones, associate director of Born Free Foundation UK, says the consequences for these animals could be deadly if the Congo’s plan were to move forward.
“Primates in particular are highly social,” Jones told The Dodo. “Capturing live great apes from the wild usually entails disrupting entire social groups and killing other family members, with devastating consequences for family groups. Given the precarious status of these species, the proposed transfers could have a very significant conservation impact.”
In a letter sent to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species earlier this week, Born Free and other advocacy groups pushed for the plan to be reconsidered, as the removal of endangered species from the wild is technically illegal under the Congo’s national law.