Helping
Saving
Gorillas are beautiful, resilient animals. But poaching and habitat destruction have pushed their populations to the brink of extinction in recent decades.
Our brave founder, Dian Fossey, knew that gorillas would need our help to survive. Today, the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund is dedicated to continuing and expanding Dian’s work. We protect gorillas and their forests every day, while also helping the people who live near them. Click here to give today.
Dian Fossey:
A Conservation Pioneer
Dian Fossey’s work to study and protect the lives of the wild gorillas in Rwanda touched the hearts of people around the world. Her focus, courage and passion have inspired many conservationists who have followed since. And her legacy lives on today, in the gorilla protection, science, education and people programs of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund.
What We Do
Daily Gorilla
Protection
Scientific
Research
Training
Conservationists
Helping
Communities
Get the latest gorilla news in your inbox.
Fossey
Fund News:
From the field
Rwandan students debate: Women should take a lead in conservation!
Our Ellen DeGeneres Campus was the host for this year’s conservation debate among students from schools near Volcanoes National Park …
Mukecuru remembrance: One of the oldest mountain gorillas
By Veronica Vecellio, Fossey Fund gorilla program senior advisor Mountain gorilla Mukecuru, one of the oldest mountain gorillas we’ve ever …
Press Release: New study shows young gorillas are resilient
Most species, from baboons to humans to horses, commonly experience hardships in later life if they have suffered serious adversity …
Women leading the way: Female trackers pursue conservation goals
Claudine Niyigena and Jacqueline Ntakirutimana are among the four women who have recently joined the Fossey Fund’s tracker teams in …
Follow Our Journey
Our teams of trackers in the DRC have a very different approach to gorilla protection and tracking than our teams in Rwanda. Grauer’s gorillas aren’t habituated, and for good reasons! Unlike their mountain gorilla cousins, they are still victims of intentional poaching and live outside of protected areas. That means that our trackers have to use things like knuckleprints and footprints, night nests and destroyed vegetation to track them a day behind. Their dedication is unmatched and is unwavering!
📸: Cedric Ujeneza & Yntze van der Hoek
The Fossey Fund provides guidance and support for more than 100 families in Rwanda to help create their own kitchen gardens! By providing essential tools, cultivation tips and seeds, these families are able to grow gardens full of nutritious vegetables that they can use as additional income or to help feed their families.
Esther’s family is one of more than 100 families who received guidance and support. "Thanks to the Fossey Fund, we are now eating fresh and nutritious vegetables right from our own kitchen gardens near our homes!" says Esther.
📸: Vanson Cyuzuzo
You can help protect your environment and the gorillas’ environment on #worldenvironmentday by reducing and reusing plastics! Check out our tote and water bottle bundle. For every person who uses a reusable water bottle, we eliminate over 150 single-use bottles every year. If everyone used only reusable bottles, that would save our planet approximately 1,182 billion single-use bottles a year. 😮 Follow the link in our bio to shop today!
Exciting news from the field! Ubuhamya from Segasira’s group has successfully given birth. This adorable new arrival marks the second baby in our newest group. Segasira is now a proud father of two! And guess what? The infant is a girl! 💗 Congratulations, Ubuhamya!
📸: Pelagie Mutuyimana
Did you know there are approximately 12 globally threatened species that live in Volcanoes National Park – where our teams work to protect mountain gorillas. That means that when we protect gorillas and their habitat, we are also protecting many other species.
Smile! It’s the weekend! 😄
📸: Cedric Ujeneza
Fun Fact Friday: Female gorillas also have a hierarchy in their groups. Hierarchy among females is regulated by several factors, such as number of offspring and relationships with other group members, especially the dominant silverback. All of this helps shape the groups in many ways.
Here you can see silverback Mutobo surrounded by 4 females.
📸: Jean de Dieu Tuyizere
When you're a gorilla, it's hard to pass up on a tasty bamboo shoot! 😁 Bamboo shoots are a favorite food for gorillas.
📸: Cedric Ujeneza
Remember when you were a kid and that puddle was just asking you to play in it? Umusaruro wasn’t able to pass up a bit of fun!
📸: Cedric Ujeneza
Understanding the causes of stress in gorillas is crucial for developing effective protection strategies. 💪
Researchers from the @uofmichigan are assisting us in measuring stress levels and transferring techniques from their U.S. laboratory to the labs at our Ellen campus in Rwanda.
This collaborative effort brings hope for long-term monitoring of gorilla stress, conducted directly in the gorillas' habitat, without the cost and time of shipping samples.
Here you can see Stacy and Nick, researchers from the University of Michigan, training Fossey Fund staff to analyze samples in our labs.
Do we think Mubyeyi from Kureba’s group is feeling a bit dizzy? We certainly do!
Just like human babies, infant gorillas learn through play. So we love to see Mubyeyi having fun!
📸: Pelagie Mutuyimana
🚨 Today is the last day to save 20% off your entire order when you purchase from our online store! Don't miss out on some great deals on our #gorillagear! 😎 (LINK IN BIO)
100% of the profits from the sales of our gorilla gear go directly towards saving gorillas. 💛🦍
Women should take a lead in conservation! 💪 That's the winning message from this year's conservation debate at our Ellen DeGeneres Campus in Rwanda. Fourteen schools located near the gorillas in Volcanoes National Park participated in this popular competition we started five years ago.
Read the full story at the link in our bio.
Can you spot a few differences between mountain gorillas and Grauer’s gorillas? Ready… set… go!
