A baby gorilla has lost his hand after becoming caught in a poacher's snare in Kahuzi Biega National Park, eastern DR Congo.

Three-year-old Baby Meteo had managed to free himself from the snare when park rangers found him, but despite the efforts of gorilla vets it was not possible to save Meteo's hand. This is sadly not an isolated incident - continued conflict in eastern DR Congo has lead to a rise in poaching and illegal activity in and around the national parks.

The Gorilla Organization has launched an appeal for funding to help support the Kahuzi Biega National Park rangers, and to continue working with communities surrounding the park to help reduce poaching - the elephant population in Kahuzi-Biega has been all but wiped out and we cannot allow this to happen to the gorillas. Please make a donation today to help us to protect gorillas from the threat of poaching and habitat loss.

Kahuzi Biega is also home to the charismatic silverback Mugaruka, who, like Meteo, lost his hand in a snare as an infant. Mugaruka's wound healed naturally and he as grown up to be a successful silverback with many offspring. We hope Meteo will have the same chance.