Dian Fossey Biography, Death, Works and Photos with Gorillas:
Dian Fossey interesting facts and her contribution towards mountain gorilla conservation;
DIAN FOSSEY was an American zoologist famously known for undertaking an extensive study of mountain gorillas which she carried out in mountain forests of Rwanda from 1966 up to to the day of her murder in 1985.
While on this study, she developed a very strong bond with these primates and she got determined about protecting them from poachers which later led to her unsolved murder in her cabin at Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda.
Dian Fossey was one of the leading female scientists who had been recruited by a palaeontologist Louis Leakey to study Great Apes in their natural habitats in mountain forests of Rwanda which she did for two decades, published a book called “Gorillas in the Mist”in 1983 in which she told her story.
Described in details the life of these animals and it caught attention of the movie industry hence leading to production of an adventurous movie called Gorillas in the Mist in 1988 telling her story.
Early Life Of Dian Fossey;
Dian Fossey was a daughter of Hazel, a fashion model and George Edward Fossey a real estate agent and a business owner. She was born in 1932 in San Francisco, California and grew up with her step dad after her parents divorcing when she was only six years old.
Dian showed interest for animals at a very small age, she participated in horseback riding lessons, she was an aspiring veterinarian. In defiance of her step dads wish, she enrolled for a business course for her college.
However, she spent her summer break following her fresh year of college on a ranch in Montana which built attachment and strengthened her love for animals and hence encouraged her to enroll in a pre-veterinary course at the university of California.
After finding some of the courses quite very challenging leading to failure of her second-year program, she joined San Jose State College where she enrolled for a bachelor’s degree in occupational therapy and graduated in 1954.
She interned in various hospitals of California and later moved to Kosair Crippled Children’s Hospital where he worked as an Occupational Therapist.
Dian Fossey Journey to Africa:
Due to lack of finances, Dian Fossey had to turn down an offer to join the Henry’s on an African safari. However, she managed to go on a seven week African trip after borrowing $8,000 to top up on her savings and got enough money to finance her first safari to Africa in 1963, she arrived in September, Nairobi, Kenya.
With help of William Holden’s safari guide, John Alexander, Dian Fossey visited various parts of Africa among which included the saline lake of Manyara most famous for holding big flocks of flamingo birds, Ngorongoro famous for its abundant wild life, Tsavo one of Africa’s largest game reserve, and then finally visited Olduvai George in Tanzania and mountain Mikeno in Congo.
By October 16, she was in Uganda staying at Walter Baumgartel’s hotel. Walter Baumgartel was an advocate for gorilla conservation and was among the first people who saw the benefits that tourism would bring in that area. He introduced Dian to two of Kenyan wildlife photographers, Joan and Alan Root.
It was during these days in Uganda that Dian Fossey first encountered mountain gorillas in their natural habitats. Dian later returned home to Louisville; she published three articles in a newspaper briefly talking about her visit to Africa.
Dian Fossey Second Visit To Africa To Study Mountain Gorillas;
Three years later after her an African safari, Dian Fossey met with Dr. Leaky in Louisville and he gave a her a life changing suggestion of conducting an extensive study of mountain gorillas and she agreed.
Leaky funded Dian to do this research and she relocated to Africa. She arrived in Nairobi, Kenya in December 1966, with help of Alan Root, Dian began her first field study in Congo at Kabara in 1967.
After root helping her get work permits to work in Virunga, recruiting 2 African men that would stay and work with her, giving her brief introductions about basic gorilla tracking, helping her feel at home, he had to leave in 2 days.
Now Dian was by herself and the two African men at the camp. Later, Sanweke, an experienced gorilla tracker joined her. Made her work more efficient, taught her a lot she didn’t know, they worked tirelessly in the thick forests every day.
Time came in July, 1967 when political situations worsened in Congo caused by a rebellion in Kivu province. Dian and Sanweke were escorted down the mountains to safety with armed soldiers.
After spending two weeks at Rumangabo under military guards, Dian thought of a smart move to get out of that camp. She bribed guards with cash asking them to escort her to Kisoro, Uganda to do some services to her vehicle.
While in Uganda, she instead went to travelers rest hotel and Ugandan military was called on Congo soldiers, they were arrested and Dian was at safety now.
From Uganda to Rwanda and then finally flying back to Nairobi, Kenya, she met with Dr. Leaky and they made a decisions that she was to continue with her work but this time in Virunga mountains in Rwanda.
Dian Fossey Research in Rwanda:
While in Rwanda, Dian met with a woman called Rosamond Carr who had stayed in Rwanda for quite some good years hence very familiar with the country.
Through Carr, she met with Alyette DeMunck, a Belgian woman born and raised in Kivu province who had leaved Congo with her family due to political instabilities there and decided to settle in Rwanda.
Alyette was very much exposed to Rwanda and its people so she helped Fossey to find a suitable place for her camp where she carried on with her research.
In September 1967, Fossey established Karisoke Research Center deriving the first four letters “Kari” from Mt. Karisimbi that rose south of her camp and “soke”, the lat four letters of Mt. Bisoke that rose to the north behind her camp little did she know that she had launched the beginnings of an international research station that was to be utilized by students and scientists from various parts of the world.
Time came and her friend Alyette left leaving her with no interpreter at the camp.but with hand gestures and facial expressions they were able to communicate, life and research had to carry on until in 1968 that the National Geographic Society sent her a photographer, Bob Campbell to capture her works.
This NGS project put her works into lime light, people around the world appreciated it giving her fame and forever changing lives of mountain gorillas.
Dian Fossey travelled between Africa and Cambridge for four consecutive years as she had enrolled for PhD in the department of animal behaviour at Darwin College in 1970 to advance on her academic qualifications which she completed in 1974.
With all these academic credentials, Dian was more determined to carry on with her work and also helped her secure more funding. She became much aware of the increasing threats faced by mountain gorillas from cattle herders and poachers.
Although gorillas seemed not to be the main targets for these groups of people, they normally used to fall in traps set for other animals like bushkobs and antelopes.
She fought them through various techniques, unorthodox methods which included spray painting cattle to scare cattle herders and discourage them from grazing their cattle from the park, wearing masks to scare them off, burning snares and direct confrontations.
The locals became so much offended with these acts because they relied on the park for food and other basic necessities.
Dian also used money from her pockets to equip the power rangers with basic necessities like food, boots and uniforms, wage increments to encourage them to be more active in protecting the park and its inhabitants, to enforce the anti-poaching laws.
Dian Fossey And Digit
DIGIT was a five-year-old gorilla when he first met him in 1967 living in one of her study groups. He had a damaged finger on his right hand and hence the name Digit was deprived from that.
She built a very strong bond with her but unfortunately digit was killed in December in 1977 by poachers as he was trying to defend her group of which they managed to escape safely leaving him behind after being stabbed multiple times.
This made Dian very desperate to stop the killings. Digit was a gorilla on the famous photos Bob Campbell had captured and hence he served as the official representative of the mountain gorillas appearing in magazines and posters throughout the world.
Dian decided to use this chance of digit’s mysterious death to get attention and support of gorilla conservation throughout the world. She went ahead and established DIGIT Fund to raise money for conservation and anti-poaching initiatives which was later named DIAN FOSSEY GORILLA FUND (DFGF).
In 1980, Dian Fossey moved to Ithaca, New York and she used some of her time there to focus on writing her book she called Gorillas in the Mist talking about her stories with encounter of gorillas in Africa which was later published in 1983.
Dian Fossey Unsolved Death;
In a very short period of time after her return to Rwanda, a few weeks before her 54th birthday, Dian Fossey was found brutally murdered in her cabin on the morning of 27th December, 1985, she had been cut twice on her head and face with a machete.
Evidence showed that there was a forced entry but no signs of robbery being the intention. She was laid to rest behind her camp at Karisoke among her Gorilla family.
FAQs about Dian Fossey;
Dian Fossey was never married, she had a few male close friends, dated with a man called Alexie Forester in Rhodesia who was a brother to a man he had dated back in America but things never worked out for them.
Dian Fossey was an American zoologist best known for her extensive study of mountain gorillas and her researches and conversation methods put in place helped to increase the number of gorillas in the whole world.
Dian Fossey was never married therefore she didn’t have any child however there are two known abortions she had.
For eighteen good years, Dian Fossey was in mountains studying about gorillas. She devoted all her life to these creatures and made the world aware of their existence.
Best Rwanda Safaris to Leran More about Dian Fossey:
Join us on at rip to See Gorillas in Rwanda, enjoy cultural performances and and also visit the Diane Fossey tombs.
Visit the 3 most popular national parks in Rwanda for activities like chimp and gorilla trekking, bird watching & game
The 10 day Rwanda Safari covers all the tourism aspects of Rwanda from primates to culture to big five game.