Volcano National Park

Parc National des Volcans (© Angela Meder)

Country:
Rwanda

Conservation status:
National Park,
part of Virunga Conservation Area

Area:
120 km²

Height:
Karisimbi: 4507 m,
Visoke: 3711 m,
Mgahinga: 3474 m,
Muhavura: 4127 m,
Sabinyo 3637 m

Gorillas:
Virunga Conservation Area:
c. 480 mountain gorillas

Gorilla tourism:
not possible

Rwanda, Volcano National Park -
tourist groups

	Feb. 2008	Sep. 2008	Feb. 2009	May 2009	Aug. 2009	Dec. 2009	May 2011	Jan. 2014
Suza A	38	40	40	40	41	28	30	28
Karisimbi (Suza B)						15	16	15
Amahoro	17	18	16	16	17	16	18	17
Umubano	9	9	9	10	11	11	12	11
Hirwa	12	18	13	12	11	12	16	9
Sabinyo	8	8	9	9	9	10	12	8
Gruppe 13 (Agashya)	23	25	24	24	26	22	25	25
Kwitonda	16	17	17	16	18	19	21	18

Rwanda, Volcano National Park -
research groups

	Feb. 2008	Sep. 2008	Feb. 2009	May 2009	Dec. 2009	May 2011	Nov. 2012	Jan. 2014
Pablo	43	43	43	45	47	47	43	7
Shinda	26	29	28
Isabukuru	5	7	7	9	10	11	11	16
Titus	10	10	10	7	6	7	9	?
Kuryama	12	14	14	15	15	15	14	?
Bwenge	9	11	11	10	11	11	9	11
Inshuti		4	4	6	6	7	?	?
Ntambara				10	11	11	12	17
Ugenda				19	12	14	9	11
Urugamba					6	5	?

Memories - Working with Two Mountain Gorillas in the Cologne Zoo

June 2018

The two mountain gorillas from the Virunga Mountains in Rwanda, Coco and Pucker, arrived in the Cologne Zoo in May 1969. At that time it was a very...[details]

Gorillas in our Midst: the Current Whereabouts of Coco and Pucker

June 2018

Dian Fossey's famous book Gorillas in the Mist (1983) contains several memorable episodes from her years of studying the mountain gorillas in the...[details]

Number of Virunga Gorillas Increased again!

May 2018

In 2015 to 2016 another gorilla census was conducted in the Virunga Volcanoes - and as the censuses before, the result was very positive again. It...[details]

Silverback Sagas: Dominance Struggles Among Male Gorillas

January 2018

When powerful silverbacks jostle for dominance within a group, they can sustain very serious injuries with their long canine teeth. Over the last 30...[details]

DFGF Celebrates 50 Years of Karisoke

January 2018

It is 50 years now that Dian Fossey established the Karisoke Research Center to study the little known mountain gorillas in the Volcanoes National...[details]

Two Silverbacks Die in Rwanda

December 2014

The 21-year-old silverback male Umushikirano (Rano), leader of Titus group in Volcanoes National Park, was found dead on July 28, 2014 by trackers....[details]

The Work of Art of Conservation

November 2013

Singing Amahoro (peace) at Rushubi School in Musanze, Rwanda (© Art of Conservation)

Art of Conservation (AoC) is pleased to celebrate our first 7 years of successful creative learning and community development programs about...[details]

The 2011 Kwita Izina

January 2012

Performance at the Kwita Izina (© Gabriele Müller-Jensen)

Rwanda demonstrates how much the country values its few remaining mountain gorillas. Every year, Kwita Izina is celebrated in June. All mountain...[details]

Human Metapneumovirus Infection

July 2011

Mararo grooming her sick son Impundu (© Magdalena Braum)

The genetic relatedness of mountain gorillas and humans has led to concerns about interspecies transmission of infectious agents. Human-to-gorilla...[details]

Changing Ecological Conditions

December 2010

Cyril Grüter on top of a Virunga Volcano (© Cyril Grüter)

The mountain gorillas of the Virunga Volcano Massif have been the subject of intense research and conservation efforts by the Karisoke Research...[details]

Employee Health in Kahuzi-Biega

June 2010

A ranger has his EHP health check (© MGVP)

Historically, the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project (MGVP), in collaboration with host country national wildlife, natural resource and/or tourism...[details]

Rapid Decline in the Largest Group of Mountain Gorillas

December 2008

Interaction between the Pablo group and Beetsme’s group (© Veronica Vecellio, DFGFI)

Pablo's group is the largest habituated group of mountain gorillas in the Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda, or anywhere in the world. The group was...[details]

Training of HuGo Members

October 2008

In the villages close to the gorilla national parks in Uganda and Rwanda, HuGo (Human-Gorilla Conflict Intervention) teams are working to improve the...[details]

Sweaters for Rangers

January 2008

Rangers of the Kahuzi-Biega National Park with new sweaters (© Carlos Schuler)

The rangers of the Kahuzi-Biega National Park, of the Mikeno Sector in the Virunga National Park and of the Volcano National Park received green...[details]