This section is concerned with the hunting and killing of apes for food - "bushmeat". The bushmeat killing of great apes is the greatest threat to the survival of the species in most of their African range states.

It also threatens orangutans, who are already under great pressure from loss of habitat and poaching for the pet trade. It causes immense suffering in those great apes who are shot or snared, and in the infants who are orphaned when their mothers are killed.

Buying & Selling Apes and Ape Meat is Illegal

There are strong cultural reasons why some people choose to eat apes or other endangered species, but whether it is a tradition or a modern whim, buying and selling apes and ape meat is illegal. Moreover, anyone who eats ape meat today must recognize that he or she will stop eating apes in a decade or three. They can choose whether to stop eating now, and leave the ape populations to recover and play their role in the ecology of the forests we all need, or they can stop when Africa's apes become extinct.

When the Buying Stops, the Killing Stops Too

Fashions often change because of celebrity role models, and in Central Africa football stars are among the biggest celebrities.

Thus, it is exciting that Cameroonian star Geremi kindly agreed to record this message to encourage his fans to avoid endangered species Bushmeat. As the WildAid/ACAP slogan says, "WHEN THE BUYING STOPS, THE KILLING STOPS TOO"

I am proud to play for Cameroon, a country full of amazing/extraordinary wildlife. Chimpanzees, gorillas and elephants make of Cameroon and its neighbouring countries a place unique on earth. Sadly, these animals will disappear. The worldwide consumption of bush meat means that our natural fauna could disappear forever. Together, we must stop buying this meat, because by doing so, we prevent the slaughter of these animals (or when the buying stops, the killing stops too). - Geremi

Count Me In for Conservation

{vimeo}4984959{/vimeo}The Jane Goodall Institute UK is fighting the devastating illegal bushmeat trade as part of a new campaign: 'Count Me In for Conservation'. You can find the video here: http://vimeo.com/4984959

Reports

The 2013 Rapid Response Assessment by the United Nations Environment Programme
 on ape trade

• Stolen Apes: The Illicit Trade in Chimpanzees, Gorillas, Bonobos and Orangutans

The 2009 Report  on Poaching & Seed Dispersal

• Bushmeat poaching reduces the seed dispersal and population growth rate of a mammal-dispersed tree

The Ape Alliance 'Recipes for Survival: controlling the Bushmeat trade' report - 2006

Funded by WSPA is now available for NGO's and governments.  This review co authored by Ian Redmond, Tim Aldred, Katrin Jedamzik and Madeline Westwood set out to examine the current state of knowledge of the Bushmeat trade and how conservation community has reacted to the Bushmeat crisis.

• Download the Bushmeat Trade Report 'Recipes for Survival' (Google Documents - PDF file 4.95Mb)
  The appendices for the review can be access via Google Documents:
• Appendix 1 Species Hunted (Excel file 1.1Mb)
• Appendix 2 Primates Hunted (Excel file 225Kb)
• Appendix 3 Organisation Projects and Campaigns (Excel file 173Kb)
• Appendix 4 Index of Organisations (Excel file 55Kb)
• Appendix 5 References Abstracts (Word file 193Kb)

The Ape Alliance 2001 Bushmeat Report 'The Next Meal'

• Download 'The Next Meal' (Google Documents - PDF file 4.9Mb)

The Ape Alliance 1998 Report on 'The African Bushmeat Trade'.

• The African Bushmeat Trade. (Google Documents - PDF file 549Kb)

Other Sources of Information

• The UK Bushmeat Working Group 
• The Poverty and Conservation Learning Group
• The Bushmeat Network - A regional approach to address the bushmeat problem in East Africa
• Visit the Bushmeat Crisis Task Force web site at: www.bushmeat.org
• Another source of information on the bushmeat tragedy and crisis is The Bushmeat Project.
• Members involved with stopping bushmeat
• If you would like to help end the keeping of primates as pets click here to sign the petition