ENTRY DESCRIPTION
Scale a map of African to a sheet of printer paper, and the habitat of the mountain gorilla is smaller than a penny. It’s this question of land that stands at the heart of why these animals remain endangered. Over 100,000 people live in areas surrounding the gorillas’ habitat, and the cultivation of land has led to the shrinking of this already confined space. Poaching, civil war, and disease have also contributed to the deaths of these impressive creatures.

I spoke with my guides early this November morning to express interest in a family positioned in a less obstructed area. Thick foliage often conceals the broader scene, making it difficult to convey the impressive landscape that inspired the name of this subspecies.

We arrived at the Kwitonda family along the rock wall separating the farmland from the jungle. While cultivated land wasn’t what I originally had in mind as “open space,” I soon realized this was the story to be told. As the squeeze is placed on this already delicate space, scenes like this are becoming more commonplace. Animals previously considered mythical figures of the jungle are now roaming across land maintained by humans.

Life very much on the fringe.

AUTHOR
Eric's interest in photography began when his parents gave him an old film camera to use for his course in high school. While the class initially served as an escape from his rigorous biology and chemistry courses, it would eventually become the catalyst for each of his interests and passions melding into one. The film process revealed the "magic" of how science and technology could immortalize a scene in front of him. With this, his creative side would soon be unlocked.

Eric earned a Bachelor's Degree in Biology from Wake Forest University. He enjoyed his courses in physiology, molecular biology, and genetics, but it was ecology that grabbed his attention. The idea that life, across species and geographies, is intertwined resonated with him long after his classes concluded.

This concept has driven much of Eric's travel and work to date. He seeks to explore new cultures, new areas of the world, and unique wildlife with the hope that his images can deliver that same empowering idea to others that he felt in his studies — that we can all share some connection and hold interest in other people and living things, even when the link might not be apparent.

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