Primates die from anthrax, causing bush meat scare

The government of Cameroon has warned people against eating monkey meat after discovering that several chimpanzees and gorillas in a game reserve near the capital had died of anthrax. The warning was issued on Tuesday following medical tests on the bodies of two chimpanzees and two gorillas found dead in the Dja game reserve, 100 km southeast of Yaounde. “Analysis of samples taken from the dead animals indicates that the principal cause of their death is anthrax, a highly contagious disease to humans,” the Ministry of Forestry and Wildlife said in a statement on Tuesday. Law prohibits the killing of gorillas and chimpanzees, but the meat of both primates is a prized delicacy for many Cameroonians, who enjoy a wide variety of bush meat. This is the first time that anthrax, an acute and potentially fatal disease usually found in cattle, sheep and goats, has been detected in gorillas and chimpanzees in Cameroon. The government warned people living in and around the Dja reserve to avoid touching or consuming any monkey found dead. It also urged them to bury such animals without delay and to report their death to the authorities. The official statement did not say when the four primates who died of anthrax were found, but a source in the Ministry of Forestry and Wildlife told IRIN that they died between November and December last year. Samples from the dead animals had been sent to Germany for laboratory analysis, he added. Stephen Tarkang Ebai, the national director of wildlife, said the government would soon launch a nationwide public awareness campaign against the killing and consumption of protected endangered primates. “Chimpanzees and gorillas fall in class “A” of protected animals. We cannot deny that this highly valued species of animals which are protected are equally being poached by individuals,” Ebai said. “Anyone caught either with a whole or part of these protected species of animals is liable to at least one month imprisonment, or a fine of between one and ten million CFA francs (US $2,000 to 20,000)," he added. The Last Great Ape Organization (LAGA), an Israeli-funded non-governmental organisation, has taken at least 20 Cameroonian poachers to court with the backing of the Ministry of Wildlife for killing protected species. “The laws protecting wildlife in Cameroon are there, but they need to be reinforced by organisations like us,” said LAGA president Ofir Drori. “If endangered species like gorillas, chimpanzees and elephants among others are not protected, they will disappear in years to come,” he added.