Dian Fossey

Dian Fossey (http://cache.eb.com/eb/image?id=61990&rendTypeId=4)

“The man who kills the animals today is the man who kills the people who get in his way tomorrow.” This is what Dian Fossey said about poachers. Dian Fossey is a hero because she made an important contribution to the scientific understanding of gorillas.

Dian Fossey had a hard child life because she didn’t have a good relationship with her parents. She was born in San Francisco, California, January 16, 1932, during the Great Depression. Her mom was Kitty Fossey /Price and her Father was George Fossey. Her Stepfather was Richard Price. Dian first loved animals because she did not have a very good relationship with her mother and father. Later, she moved to Kentucky to get a job at a children’s hospital. There she met a nurse named Mary White Henry. Mary White Henry traveled a lot and one day brought back some pictures of Africa. Fossey was intrigued by them and promised herself she would visit it someday. Later she read as book by George Schaller called “The year of the Gorilla.” Then she finally visited Africa. After she got back, World Famous Lois Leakley offered her a job studying gorillas fulltime. Speechless, she said yes. As you can see, Dian Fossey’s child life had a very inspiring impact on her life.

She had many challenges; some of them include traps that were laid out to trap gorillas, lack of money to fund gorillas, ecotourism, (which gave gorillas harmful parasites), and poachers, who set out traps to kill gorillas. The Rwandan government was also a problem.

There are many traits to describe Dian Fossey. One trait that describes Dian Fossey is determined. When she ran out of money to fund gorillas, she kept trying to help them with what little money she had. Also, when poachers kept setting up traps to trap gorillas, she just kept destroying them. Dian Fossey was also courageous because she didn’t let ecotourism, poachers, or isolation get in the way of her study. Also, Dian Fossey was very focused on her work. When people hurt the gorillas with parasites, she did not give up hope, instead, she concentrated on helping them. Fossey had many challenges.

Some of Dian Fossey’s contributions are: She destroyed thousands of gorilla traps and she saved thousands of gorillas. She also made history as the first person ever to touch a gorilla. Fossey had many contributions.

Some awards and recognitions are: she was soon Dr. Dian Fossey and she was invited as a special guest to a National Geographic dinner party. To Dian Fossey, the greatest award of all was to earn the trust of a gorilla. As you can see, she received many awards and recognitions.

Later in her life, she wrote a book called "Gorillas in the Mist"

As you can see, Dian Fossey is a hero because she made an important contribution to the scientific understanding of gorillas.