Congo hippos disappearing

I just read this AP article - goes along with the Africa study.

Tuesday, September 13, 2005

Only
887 hippos are left in Congo, once home to the world's largest
population of the water-loving mammal, and they will be extinct in the
African country, an international environmental group warned Monday.

Hippos are being killed by government soldiers, local militia and poachers, the World Wildlife Fund said. The meat is sold as food while teeth end up as part of the illegal ivory trade. Hippos fetch around $50 per animal.

The
latest aerial survey puts the hippopotamus population in northeastern
Congo's Virunga National Park down to under 1,000 animals, compared to
some 29,000 in 1974. The last survey in 2003 counted 1,307.

The
continued presence of soldiers and armed groups in the park — a UNESCO
World Heritage Site with a 400-mile-long boundary — has made it
difficult to protect the animals, the WWF said.

"Soldiers are left in the park without being fed nor paid and that's a recipe for disaster," said Marc Languy, who heads WWF's regional program.

Following
a five-year war in this central African country, the postwar
transitional government has had little success in calming the east,
where killings, looting and rapes continue almost unabated.

Conducted
last month, the hippopotamus survey was carried out by the Congolese
Institute for Conservation of Nature, the European Union and WWF.

The
disappearance of hippos also triggers serious secondary effects for the
population, the WWF said. Because hippo dung provides vital nutrients
for the fish in Lake Edward, its absence has led to a rapid decline of
the lake's fish stocks.

"If
the government does not take the hippo situation in Virunga seriously,
this will not only lead to an environmental disaster, but also to an
economic crisis for local communities," Languy said.