You can follow campaign updates on social media with #ForWildlifeRangers or find out more at WildlifeRangerChallenge.org.

About the Wildlife Ranger Challenge:

Covid-19 has created a temporary safer world for Africa’s wildlife. But the floodgates are opening as the economic impacts of Covid drive more poaching. With tourism gone, the rangers who care for wildlife lack the resources to do their jobs. The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund’s ranger teams are joining thousands of others across the continent taking part in the Wildlife Ranger Challenge, a series of physical and mental challenges, culminating in a 21km virtual race on Saturday 18th September.

You can join them! Show your support and sign up to run or walk with the community game scout team from wherever you are in the world:  WildlifeRangerChallenge.org/registration. Now is the time to go the extra mile to support our rangers!

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Your contribution will help support 65 rangers and an estimated 700 livelihoods in and around the Nkuba Conservation Area in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Every dollar we raise via JustGiving will earn an additional 25% match!

Your donation also helps to unlock vital funds for other ranger teams across Africa; the Scheinberg Relief Fund will donate the equivalent of 75% of the amount raised to the Ranger Fund!

The role of rangers:

In the DRC, Fossey Fund rangers follow 4-8 groups of unhabituated Grauer’s gorillas in the Nkuba Conservation Area (NCA), a community owned forest, covering an area of 68,000 hectares.  Trackers hike deep into the forest, covering difficult terrain, and spend up to two weeks in remote base camps to protect the gorillas.  In 2020, the rangers dismantled 2,400 snares in the NCA -- a dramatic increase over 2019.The increasing number of snares found during the global pandemic underscores the vital importance of daily protection and the critical role the rangers play in conservation with boots on ground EVERY. SINGLE. DAY!  Fossey Fund rangers also collect scientific data used to analyze the gorilla's feeding patterns, genetics, and range to help inform future conservation strategies.

Impact that 2020 WRC had on Organisation & Rangers:

The 2020 WRC was a source of inspiration and encouragement for the DFGF rangers and staff to see that communities around the world have joined together to elevate the importance of rangers’ sacrifices protecting and preserving the gorillas and their habitat. With the funds donated to the Fossey Fund through WRC, we were able to purchase needed supplies to support our rangers.

Ongoing effects of the pandemic:

Economic inflation (as high as 50% at times) has been the primary impact of the pandemic throughout the Nkuba Conservation Area,  This has led to food shortages throughout the country as profiteering and stockpiling has occurred in major cities. As a result, communities in Nkuba faced worsening food insecurity. These shortages and inflation led to an increase in hunting bushmeat (including gorillas), cutting down vegetation and collecting other resources to sell for income. Increased hunting activity also increases the likelihood of zoonotic disease transmission, which threatens the Grauer’s gorillas and the biodiversity of Nkuba. 

While the monthly average of snares found in Nkuba increased steadily through December 2020, we have been encouraged to begin to see a decline.  The number of snares (275) found between February and April 2021 was finally down to the same level as the previous year.  The expanded presence of rangers throughout the forest and efforts to support the communities with food security projects are making a positive impact. 

How support in 2021 could help:

As more communities have seen the positive impact of our program in the NCA on individual livelihoods, they are eager to commit to adding their lands to the NCA and to join in our community conservation model.  At this time, our rangers can only cover about 680 sq km out of the total 1582 sq km that encompasses the NCA.  We would like to be able to hire and train more trackers from the communities, which would help provide additional employment. To accommodate a larger ranging staff and extended ranging area, we would also need to develop auxiliary base camps in Nkuba and invest in gear and supplies.

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Tusk Trust Limited is a charity registered in England and Wales, No: 1186533, and a company registered in England and Wales, No: 11948023. 

In the US, “The Friends of Tusk Fund” donor advised fund is administered by CAF America (Tax ID 68-0480736)

Donors who pay tax in the UK can enhance their donation through Gift Aid, meaning that for every £10 raised, Tusk can recover an additional £2.50 for the cause from the UK Government.

US supporters wishing to make a tax deductible donation please click here.

Main photo courtesy of Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund