The Virunga National Park (PNVi) announced on Tuesday the death of a historic gorilla from the place.

Ndakasi, an orphan mountain gorilla, had resided at the Senkwekwe center "for more than a decade," the PNVi statement said.

“On the evening of September 26, following a long illness, his condition deteriorated rapidly,” explains the park, located in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

“Ndakasi breathed his last in the arms of his guardian and lifelong friend André Bauma.

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It is with heartfelt sadness that Virunga announces the death of beloved orphaned mountain gorilla, Ndakasi.



It is with deep sadness that Virunga announces the death of the orphaned mountain gorilla Ndakasi.https: //t.co/GdkJbhWESz pic.twitter.com/bsCKdEq8tB

- Virunga NationalPark (@gorillacd) October 5, 2021

Raised and cared for by humans

Known the world over for her "warm" personality, Ndakasi had appeared in several television shows and films.

"She also rose to internet fame in 2019, when a selfie of her went viral on Earth Day," says PNVi.

Born in 2007, this mountain gorilla was orphaned two months after the slaughter of her mother by militiamen.

Vulnerable, she was unable to return to the wild and became a resident of a center set up by the PNVi where she benefited, with another gorilla, Ndeze, from special care for eleven years.

The PNVi mountain gorilla population is estimated at 1,063, according to a census carried out from 2016 to 2018. Located on the border with Rwanda and Uganda, the Virunga Park covers 7,800 km².

The oldest nature reserve in Africa inaugurated in 1925, the PNVi is a sanctuary for the very rare mountain gorillas, also present in Rwanda and Uganda.

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