
Christmas came early this year for the scientists of the Gorilla Research Clinic in Buhoma, Uganda. Photographed by the Rare Species Fund's Senior Trainer, Rob Johnson, while in Uganda recently, this baby gorilla will benefit greatly from the RSF's Christmas gifts!
The Rare Species Fund (RSF) received the Clinic's wish list and set to work helping to make it a better holiday season for the gorillas and some local inhabitants of southwestern Uganda. Instead of using a sleigh to deliver a sack of toys, the RSF arrived at the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest in a Land Rover carrying cases full of scientific equipment.

Included in this delivery were more than 3,000 test tubes for samples, a vortex mixer with attachments, pipettes, centrifuge adapters, 3 digital cameras, a laptop computer, microscope light bulbs and even a case of crypto-giardia tests that required refrigeration all the way from T.I.G.E.R.S. Preserve in South Carolina to the jungles of Uganda. This donation is considered quite significant as these materials are all but impossible to come by in such a remote location.

The Gorilla Research Clinic is run by Conservation Through Public Health (CTPH). Conservation Through Public Health addresses one of the primary conservation issues surrounding some of the last mountain gorillas by monitoring gorilla, human and livestock health. Mountain gorillas are highly endangered...approximately only 800 currently exist.

These gorillas are highly protected by local authorities but one of the most serious threats lies in their similarity to humans and their susceptibility to many of the same diseases. This is of particular concern in Uganda where more than a third of the population is living on less than $1.50 per day. CTPH not only monitors gorilla health but their extensive community outreach programs educate local villagers about proper hygiene, livestock management and disease prevention helping to address the problem at the source.
WATCH AN INCREDIBLE VIDEO OF THIS TRIP FROM SC TO UGANDA HERE. WITNESS RSF'S GLOBAL OUTREACH!
Your support of the Rare Species Fund has made this Christmas wish come true for the endangered species of Uganda (and the people protecting them).
Thank you!
Learn more about conservation efforts for chimpanzees, lynx, elephants, tigers, ligers, orangutans, gibbons, apes and more through the Rare Species Fund. To see these amazing species up close and personal, visit www.myrtlebeachsafari.com/signup to get started on your own interactive tour!
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