Mountain gorillas represent one of conservation success stories but still face threats from habitat encroachment, disease, and snares that cause ongoing individual welfare harms.
Mountain gorilla conservation success masks ongoing welfare harms to individual animals. Snare injuries cause chronic pain and sometimes infection leading to death. Human disease transmission risks require careful management of tourist and researcher contact. The loss of a dominant male destabilizes entire family groups causing long-term social suffering. Conservation success must be measured in individual welfare terms as well as population numbers.