What if a mountain gorilla finds your mask?
What if a mountain gorilla finds your mask? Since the global covid19 pandemic outbreak, putting on masks has become a norm; this is because putting on masks alongside other practices helps to prevent the spread of the Covid19 virus amongst people.
Because putting a mask is essential in the prevention of the spread of covid19, it has been added on the guidelines of mountain gorilla trekking that for one to take on a trek they should have a mask and actually put it on during the mountain gorilla trekking experience. So this literally means when people go for mountain gorilla trekking nowadays, they have masks on them in the forest.
However because the gorilla trekking experience is somehow strenuous and most of the time a climbing activity, it’s inevitable that during this experience you will have times when you remove your mask to catch your breath or breath in a good amount of air. During these times or breaks it’s also inevitable that your mask may follow and you will be forced to leave down and use a fresh one instead; which is a healthy and more sensible option for you. However when you leave your used mask down in the forest, chances become high for the mountain gorillas to come across the mask and actually pick it if the mask interests the gorillas.
So what happens if a mountain gorilla finds your mask?
Definitely, because a mask is a rare item in the forest, we shall assume that upon finding it the mountain gorillas may be amused by the rare item and they may either play with it or ignore. So because we want to protect the mountain gorillas we hope and pray the mountain gorillas will ignore the mask thus reduce the chances of contracting any diseases from the mask especially covid19. Though we should also consider that mountain gorillas like humans are inquisitive beings so when they find the mask in the forest these gorillas may actually pick up the mask and try to analyse it or play with it depending on the age of the mountain gorillas. (Adults are more likely to analyse it as young ones are more likely to play with it).
If the mountain gorillas find the mask and pick it up the chances of the mountain gorillas contracting any communicable disease from the mask are very high.
It’s for that reason that all mountain gorillas’ trekkers are urged to not dump their masks in the forest on their mountain gorilla trekking experience.
The main reason for mountain gorilla trekking is for mountain gorilla conservation so its important that even as trekkers go through the forest to find the mountain gorillas to spend an hour with them, that they keep the mountain gorilla habitat the forest clean and safe for the mountain gorillas.
So the question is not what happens if a mountain gorilla finds your mask, the question is how do you dispose off a used or a soiled mask while on your mountain gorilla trekking experience?
The answer to this question is, you don’t dispose off a mask in the forest. It is advisable that you keep on your mask through the entire mountain gorilla trekking experience and instances where your masks gets soiled or gets an issue that forces you to take it off and replace it with another one; you are advice and expected to safely keep the used mask in your bag or pockets and dispose it off when you are out of the forest, not when you are in the forest.
This is done to ensure that the forest which is the mountain gorilla habitat is keep clean and conducive for the wellbeing of the mountain gorillas and also to minimise chances of disease spread from humans to mountain gorillas especially the preventing the chances of spreading the coronavirus to the mountain gorillas.
