King Kong sold to help endangered species
The King Kong statue being auctioned on eBay to support WWF-Australia
© Universal Pictures
In recognition of the role that WWF is playing to create a sustainable environment not only for mountain gorillas, but for native species in Australia, Universal Pictures auctioned a limited edition King Kong statue, one of only four in Australia, through eBay - with proceeds going to WWF. The winning bidder also received a King Kong DVD signed by Peter Jackson.
The auction raised $3,250 for WWF-Australia's ongoing campaigns. WWF thanks the winning bidder and Universal Pictures for their generosity.
Less than 700 mountain gorillas survive in the world today
All great ape species including chimpanzees, orang-utans and gorillas are threatened with extinction in the wild. Destroying their natural environment is leaving them with no home. Our close relatives in the animal kingdom are endangered mainly by hunting and logging. Less than 10% of their remaining habitat could be left undisturbed by 2030.
The mountain gorilla became known to science on 17 October 1902
Over that century, these animals endured uncontrolled hunting, war, disease, destruction of their forest habitat, and capture for the illegal pet trade. There were fears that the mountain gorilla would become extinct in the same century it was discovered.
With the alarm raised, dedicated conservation initiatives have ensured that numbers of this critically endangered mountain gorilla are now slowly increasing.
Numbers have increased by 54 in the last 13 years
Ground-breaking work by conservation groups including WWF has seen the population growing from 620 in 1989 to approximately 674 today.
Half of these gorillas are found in Uganda's Bwindi Impenetrable National Park and the rest in habitat shared by Uganda, Northern Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Dramatic decline of species on our own door step
Gorillas are not the only species under threat. We are currently losing millions of Australian animals every year, driving them to extinction due to the pressure humans are putting on our natural environment.
At the current rate, we will be forced to view these, and many other species of animals in zoos, theme-parks and through digital imagery if we are to experience any other species on earth other than ourselves.
How can you help?
Become a Futuremaker. There is still enough time to turn around our planet's decline. There are many simple things you can do to prevent this current trend. Help create a path to a sustainable future in our country.
