(TIME) The Democratic Republic of the Congo has a baby gorilla problem. But theirs is the kind that has poachers capturing the animals out of the Democratic Republic of the Congo's Virunga National Park at a record rate.
As the black market for baby gorillas grows, authorities from the Congolese Wildlife Authority reported a fourth rescue of an infant this year, with the latest saved gorilla slated to sell for $40,000.
As, presumably, zoos in Russia and India clamor for their own gorillas and even wealthy keepers of exotic animals want to show off the prized animals, the underground market for the protected Congo animal has grown. Officials worry that with four infants already saved from poachers this year—the highest number ever rescued in a single year—that more may be slipping past them.
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TXT 24
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