Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka

Meet the vet helping to protect endangered mountain gorillas.

Gorillas are one of the most endangered apes in the world. For World Gorilla Day (24 September) The Week Junior Science+Nature was lucky enough to speak to Dr Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka, who shared her love for animals and conservation. Kalema-Zikusoka works in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, a huge tropical rainforest in Uganda. Her focus is to protect mountain gorillas by helping the humans who live near them lead healthier lives. Her efforts have helped the world’s population of wild mountain gorillas rise from 650 in 1997 to at least 1,063 today.

The monkey that played piano

Kalema-Zikusoka grew up in Kampala, Uganda’s capital. Her older brother used to bring home stray cats and dogs, and Kalema-Zikusoka hated to see animals suffering. A pet vervet monkey who lived across the road sparked her interest in primates (a group of animals that includes lemurs, monkeys, apes and humans). “That monkey used to like coming home to pull our cats’ and dogs’ tails, and used to steal food from the kitchen,” she told Science+Nature. “It was a very naughty vervet monkey.”