🤯 Did You Know (click to read)
Mount Nyiragongo contains one of the world’s largest persistent lava lakes.
The Virunga massif includes active volcanoes such as Mount Nyiragongo and Mount Nyamuragira, both capable of powerful eruptions. Mountain gorilla groups inhabit forests on slopes surrounding these geological giants. Lava flows and ash deposition have altered habitats in the past, reshaping vegetation patterns. Though eruptions rarely strike core gorilla zones directly, the proximity underscores environmental volatility. Few great apes coexist with active volcanic systems. Their ecosystem rests on land born from fire and still geologically alive.
💥 Impact (click to read)
Nyiragongo’s 2002 eruption sent lava into nearby cities, demonstrating the region’s instability. An eruption affecting forested slopes could disrupt feeding grounds rapidly. Volcanic ash may initially fertilize soil but can also smother plant life. Gorilla survival intertwines with tectonic forces beneath their habitat.
Geological unpredictability compounds anthropogenic threats. Conservation plans must account for natural disasters alongside poaching and disease. A species already confined to narrow ranges cannot easily relocate if slopes become uninhabitable. The mountains that sustain them also threaten them. Survival here balances on shifting earth.
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