Will Central Africa's Forest Wildlife Be Eaten into Extinction?
Wednesday, September 17, 2008 - 13:56
in Biology & Nature
Elephants, gorillas and other large forest mammals may become extinct in central Africa within 50 years if hunting meat to feed starving populations continues at the current pace. Each year, rural peoples consume some 2.2 billion pounds (one million metric tons) of so-called bushmeat from wildlife, the equivalent of four million cattle; the flesh accounts for 80 percent of the protein and fat in their diet. [More]