Community trackers at Virunga National Park, in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, recorded the birth of twin mountain gorillas within the Bageni family in early January.
Further investigation confirmed that the twins were born to adult female Mafuko and that both newborns are male. At the time of observation, the infants appeared to be healthy.
This increased the Bageni family to 59 individuals, making it the largest mountain gorilla family in Virunga. 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. Additional monitoring and protection measures will be implemented to support the twins during this critical period.
