DRC: birth of a gorilla in Kahuzi-Biega park
Mjinja and her baby, born August 7, 2021, in Kahuzi-Biega Park.
© Congolese Kahuzi-Biega National Park
Text by: Lucas Bouguet
3 min
On Saturday August 7, the female Mwinja gave birth to a male baby, in the Kahuzi-Biega natural park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
This is Mjinja's first baby with the male Nabirembo.
The populations of lowland gorillas are reviving in this region.
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On Saturday August 7, Kahuzi-Biega Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo recorded the birth of a baby gorilla from the eastern plains.
The Congolese national park of Kahuzi-Biega which extends over 600,000 hectares is a sanctuary for the gorillas of the eastern plains (or Grauer).
According to the latest count made by the park, 172 individuals of this endemic subspecies of the Democratic Republic of the Congo find refuge in this park.
It is the largest gorilla in the world.
In adulthood, a male can measure up to 1.83 meters and weigh 227 kg.
An improving situation in the park
The Congolese Institute for the Conservation of Nature affirms it: the Grauer's gorilla is no longer in imminent danger. This is also observed by Hubert Mulongoy, spokesperson for the Kahuzi-Biega park where the gorilla was born. In recent years, the security situation has improved in this region, leading to a stabilization of the population of this gorilla species.
But it has been a long way.
Hubert Mulongoy acknowledges that "
the Kahuzi-Biega Natural Park has gone through a lot of problems since 2018, until the beginning of 2021, with the indigenous peoples and residents
(...) [because of]
the conflicts that there were in the park
".
Stopping conflicts is therefore “
a sign of hope
” for the park, which wishes to be removed from the list of World Heritage in Danger by Unesco.
The spokesperson notes that "
there are hardly any more conflicts, we are on good terms with the natives and the residents and there is now a birth.
For the park, "
this agreement
[can give
hope for an increase in gorillas in Kahuzi-Biega
".
But a species still endangered on a global scale
Grauer's gorilla, however, is still one of the most endangered gorilla species.
The Wildlife Conservation Society estimates that there are 3,800 individuals left in the world.
According to data analyzed by the NGO in 2016, this species would have suffered a decrease of 77% in their number between the years 1990 and 2016.
►Also read: DRC: 6 gorilla births since January in the Virunga park
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