In a significant boost for conservation efforts, a rare set of mountain gorilla twins has been welcomed into a family in the Democratic Republic of Congo's Virunga National Park.
A Rare and Hopeful Discovery
Park officials confirmed that community trackers, who monitor the health of the endangered apes, made the first sighting of the newborn twins. This event marks the first recorded gorilla births of 2026 and is an exceptionally rare occurrence for the species. The twins, both males, were found to be in healthy condition during the initial observation.
The birth mother has been identified as Mafuko, a 22-year-old adult female. Her latest arrivals bring the total number of individuals in the Bageni family group to 59, making it the largest such group within the park. A statement from Virunga National Park described the twin birth as "a major event" for the family and for ongoing work to increase the gorilla population in the reserve.
Challenges and Enhanced Protection
While twin births are a cause for celebration, they also present unique difficulties for mountain gorillas. "Twin births among mountain gorillas are rare and present additional challenges, particularly during the early months when infants are entirely dependent on their mother for care and transport," the park's statement explained.
In response to this critical period, authorities have pledged to deploy additional monitoring and protection measures. The goal is to closely observe the twins and support their health and survival during their vulnerable first few months of life.
Mother Mafuko's Remarkable Journey
The story of the twins' mother, Mafuko, is one of resilience. She was born into the Kabirizi family in 2003 and tragically lost her own mother to armed individuals when she was just four years old. Mafuko remained with her group and later, during a split in the Kabirizi family in 2013, she joined the Bageni family.
Now an experienced mother, Mafuko has given birth to a total of seven offspring. This is not her first experience with twins; she also gave birth to a set in 2016, but they sadly died just a week after birth, highlighting the precarious nature of such births.
Mountain gorillas, a subspecies of eastern gorilla, inhabit mountainous forests spanning the borders of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, and Rwanda. Thanks to intensive conservation work, their estimated population has risen from a perilous low of around 400 individuals in the 1980s to approximately 1,000 today, making each new birth a vital contribution to the species' recovery.
