A Twin Year for Virunga
For the mountain gorillas of the Virunga National Park, Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2026 started in a very special way: on 3 January, twins were…
[details]Gorilla Groups
More than half of all mountain gorillas are habituated, meaning they are used to the presence of humans. While some groups are only observed by researchers, most are however visited by tourists. Thanks to the daily recordings made by the rangers we are able to closely track the comings and goings in these groups. Their sizes are constantly changing; it is not uncommon for whole families to dissolve, for groups to split, or for silverbacks to form new groups of their own.
D. R. Congo, Virunga National Park,
Mikeno Sector - tourist groups
| Feb. 2008 | Apr. 2010 | Jan. 2013 | Nov. 2016 | Nov. 2019 | Feb. 2022 | June 2026* | Sept. 2026 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mapuwa | 12 | 16 | 18 | 22 | 25 | 26 | 28 | 28 |
| Kabirizi | 32 | 36 | 37 | 19 | 23 | 24 | 13 | 12 |
| Munyaga | 5 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 12 | 12 | 14 |
| Humba | 9 | 12 | 16 | 10 | 13 | 15 | 18 | 20 |
| Lulengo | 5 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 11 | 11 | 15 | 18 |
| Rugendo | 5 | 5 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 18 | 19 |
| Bageni | 26 | 35 | 42 | 56 | 60 | |||
| Nyakamwe | 11 | 15 | 15 | 18 | 17 | |||
| Baraka | 25 | 19 | 15 | 18 | ||||
| Wilungula | 40 | 42 | 36 | 37 | ||||
| Masibo | 14 | 15 |
* from the website of the Virunga National Park
Solitary silverback males: Ruzirabwoba, Karateka, Mareru, Pilipili, Buhanga, Bukima, Mukunda
Rwanda, Volcanoes National Park - tourist groups
| Feb. 2008 | Dec. 2009 | May 2011 | July 2016 | Nov. 2019 | Feb. 2022 | Jan. 2024 | Sept. 2026 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suza A/Kurira | 38 | 28 | 30 | 17 | 23 | 21 | 21 | 11 |
| Karisimbi/Suza B | 15 | 16 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 10 | |
| Amahoro | 17 | 16 | 18 | 18 | 23 | 21 | 21 | 14 |
| Umubano | 9 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 11 | 12 |
| Hirwa | 12 | 12 | 16 | 19 | 17 | 13 | 13 | 21 |
| Sabinyo | 8 | 10 | 12 | 16 | 18 | 18 | 15 | 17 |
| Gruppe 13/Agashya | 23 | 22 | 25 | 20 | 25 | 22 | 20 | 18 |
| Kwitonda | 16 | 19 | 21 | 29 | 35 | 20 | 17 | 21 |
| Igisha/Suza B | 26 | 30 | 34 | 35 | 14 | |||
| Isimbi | 14 | 20 | 16 | 16 | 25 | |||
| Muhoza | 14 | 17 | 17 | 21 | ||||
| Kwisanga | 17 | 17 | 15 | |||||
| Ikaze | 6 | |||||||
| Noheli/Matsiko Cyuzuzo | 7 | 8 | ||||||
| Kigoma | 5 | 5 | ||||||
| Urwego | 7 | 6 | ||||||
| Humura | 25 | |||||||
| Izuba | 13 |
Rwanda, Volcanoes National Park -
research groups
| Feb. 2008 | Feb. 2009 | Dec. 2009 | May 2011 | Nov. 2012 | Jan. 2014 | Dec. 2016 | Dec. 2017 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pablo | 43 | 43 | 47 | 47 | 43 | 7 | 33 | 37 |
| Shinda | 26 | 28 | ||||||
| Isabukuru | 5 | 7 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 16 | 19 | 18 |
| Titus | 10 | 10 | 6 | 7 | 9 | ? | 8 | 9 |
| Kuryama | 12 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 14 | ? | 8 | 9 |
| Bwenge | 9 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 11 | ||
| Inshuti | 4 | 6 | 7 | |||||
| Ntambara | 11 | 11 | 12 | 17 | 9 | 15 | ||
| Ugenda | 12 | 14 | 9 | 11 | ||||
| Urugamba | 6 | 5 | ? | |||||
| Musilikale | ? | 13 | 20 | |||||
| Mafunzo | 12 | 14 | ||||||
| Giraneza | 6 | |||||||
| Iyambere | 6 | 7 | ||||||
| Urugwiro | 4 | |||||||
| Kureba | 9 |
Uganda, Bwindi - tourist groups
| Feb. 2008 | May 2011 | Jan. 2014 | Aug. 2016 | Dec. 2019 | Feb. 2022 | Jan. 2024 | Sept. 2026 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mubare | 10 | 5 | 9 | 11 | 6 | 9 | 7 | |
| Habinyanja | 23 | 29 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 12 | 13 | 6 |
| Rushegura | 15 | 21 | 19 | 16 | 15 | 19 | 16 | 17 |
| Nkuringo | 18 | 17 | 19 | 12 | 15 | 12 | 14 | 15 |
| Bitukura | 15 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 13 |
| Nshongi/Shongi | 28 | 22 | 18 | 7 | 8 | 11 | 13 | 12 |
| Mishaya | 12 | 7 | ? | 10 | 8 | 9 | 9 | |
| Oruzogo | 23 | 17 | 17 | 10 | 11 | 11 | ||
| Kahungye | 13 | 17 | 19 | 25 | 15 | 16 | ||
| Busingye | 9 | 9 | 12 | 10 | 10 | 14 | ||
| Bweza | 10 | 12 | 11 | 15 | 14 | 7 | ||
| Bushaho | 8 | 11 | 10 | 7 | ||||
| Bikingi | 15 | 14 | 12 | 12 | 9 | |||
| Katwe | 7 | 9 | 10 | 7 | ||||
| Mukiza/Kyagurilo B | 13 | 15 | 19 | 22 | ||||
| Kutu | 11 | 20 | 20 | 9 | ||||
| Muyambi | 7 | 7 | ||||||
| Mucunguzi | 15 | 20 | ||||||
| Christmas | 8 | 6 | ||||||
| Posho | 17 | 17 | ||||||
| Binyindo | 9 | 8 | ||||||
| Kanywanyi | 6 | |||||||
| Happy | 9 | |||||||
| Tindatine | 7 | |||||||
| Rwigyi | 22 |
Uganda, Bwindi - research group
| Feb. 2009 | May 2011 | Jan. 2014 | Aug. 2016 | Dec. 2019 | Feb. 2022 | Jan. 2024 | Sept. 2026 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kyagurilo | 17 | 13 | 15 | 20 | 8 | 4 | 6 | 8 |
| Feb. 2008 | May 2011 | Jan. 2014 | Aug. 2016 | Dec. 2019 | Feb. 2022 | Jan. 2024 | Sept. 2026 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nyakagezi* | 7 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 11 |
| Hirwa** | 12 | 16 | 9 | 19 | 17 | 13 | 17 |
* The group travels between Uganda, Rwanda and Congo; ** the group travels between Rwanda and Uganda at least since 2020
The numbers have been taken from the IGCP website since about 2018
Grauer’s Gorillas Successfully Reintroduced to the Wild
For the first time, Grauer’s gorillas from a sanctuary were successfully reintroduced to the wild. The gorillas, who had been rescued from illegal…
[details]Two Infants within Two Years at Mount Tshiaberimu
Mount Tshiaberimu (or Tshiabirimu) is located in the southern part of the Northern Sector of Virunga National Park. At the beginning of January 2020,…
[details]Gorilla Baby Boom in Bwindi?
In 2020, many gorillas were born within the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park's gorilla population; an exceptional number of 6 gorillas within 7 weeks…
[details]Increased Gorilla Density May Lead to Increased Aggression
The number of mountain gorillas on the Virunga Volcanoes has increased continuously for four decades now, as was shown during the last censuses. The…
[details]Give Me Your Dung And I Will Tell You Who You Are
In many primate species individuals coordinate their activities, share space and form groups. But how do groups form, how long can they exist and how…
[details]Tribute to Kanyonyi
It is with great sadness to inform you about the loss of one of my favorite gorillas in Bwindi, Kanyonyi, the lead silverback of Mubare group. He died…
[details]Rukina - Life Summary
![[Translate to EN:] Der Silberrückenmann Rukina, der die Kyagurilo-Gruppe in Bwindi geleitet hat, ist gestorben. (© Martha M. Robbins/MPI-EVAN)](/fileadmin/news/berggorilla-regenwald-direkthilfe-silberrueckenmann-rukina.jpg "[Translate to EN:] Der Silberrückenmann Rukina, der die Kyagurilo-Gruppe in Bwindi geleitet hat, ist gestorben. (© Martha M. Robbins/MPI-EVAN)")
We estimate that Rukina was born around 1984. He was well identified as a group member of the Kyagurilo Group in the late 1990s when he was a young…
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