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Last week we announced that the female Magori in the Humba group had given birth. Magori is an experienced mother and is very protective of her new infant, so it was only this morning that I was able to finally get a glimpse of the baby while Magori was distracted eating galium leaves:

We still don’t know if it is a male or female, but the baby seems to be doing well and was seen by the MGVP vets yesterday.

Last week I got word from the Bikenge patrol post that the Rugendo group had split up into two. The Rangers said that the silverback Pili-Pili and a juvenile had left the other gorillas and traveled far into the bamboo forests near the Rwandan border towards Jomba.

More than 6 hours walk away from them the silverback Bukima and other members of the group had remained near the edge of the park and were as usual making forays into neighbouring fields to eat crops.

A week passed and the gorillas still did not rejoin each other, but we had no confirmation of exactly which juvenile had followed Pili-Pili. So this morning I went to see and identify the gorillas with Bukima to discover who else missing.

Only an hour after leaving we found Bukima in the forest together with adult female Lubutu, blackbacks Mukunda, Kongomani, and Baseka, and a juvenile which turned out to be Noel.

By elimination that means that it is in fact the juvenile female Bavukahe which has followed Pili-Pili and split from the rest of the group. This development follows closely behind the death of Bariyanga and is the latest in a series of changes in the group’s dynamics since it was turned upside-down by the tragic massacre two years ago.

Teams of Rangers are now tracking the two groups separately and we will be keeping a close eye to see if this split becomes permanent…

Bukima is a powerful silverback

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Great news: I just found out that Magori in the Humba Group has given birth to a healthy baby. She is being a good mother and is not letting us have a decent look (or photo) so we are not sure if it is a boy or girl. I am sure Nyakamwe, Matembela, and Semakuba will also be keen to have a look at their new sibling! As always, we will post a picture of the new arrival as soon as we can…

GORILLA MASSACRE ANNIVERSARY: CONGOLESE RANGERS COMMEMORATE 2 YEARS SINCE TRAGEDY AND LAUNCH APPEAL

On the morning of 22 July 2007, Rangers in Virunga National Park found the bodies of 4 mountain gorillas killed in an execution style attack. The remains of another gorilla in the group were found 3 weeks later, with her infant missing, presumed dead. The images of the tragedy were broadcast across the globe and brought attention to the threats facing this critically endangered species.

The events of that day were described in detail on our blog at the time (click here to read)

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We were saddened to hear the news from the Gorilla Organisation that another gorilla has died at Tshiaberimu. The silverback Kanindo died from a fall down a ravine and is the 7th gorilla to die there in 2 years, bringing this fragile population to just 16 individuals.

For more details, please see Kyungu’s blog on WildlifeDirect and the GO website.

Amani the orphan gorilla is doing well and has become good friends with her new companions Kighoma and Mapendo. Here is the latest video from Andre who filmed them playing and climbing:

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The Rangers have just come back from checking on the Munyaga group and report that Kodogo (who was injured during a fight yesterday ) is doing fine. The group moved several kilometers over the last 24 hours and Kadogo has been able to keep up despite the injuries on his feet.

We are all very pleased because Kadogo is a special silverback and is Innocent ’s favourite gorilla. He is the only mountain gorilla in the world who is bald on the top of his head.

This is him as he is now:

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This morning the team tracking the Munyaga Group was at the gorillas’ nest site when they heard in the distance two silverbacks fighting, screeching and breaking branches. The team, including Rangers Yaya Mburanumwe and Martin Kazerezi, followed the tracks in the direction of the noise.

They soon found fresh blood on the forest floor:

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We have updated our Youtube Channel to the new beta format and took the opportunity to redesign it. It is now a lot easier to look through all our videos old and new.

Just scroll through the library on the right of the page. You can also of course leave comments, subscribe to our channel, or even send us a video response of your own.

Please tell me what you think of the new look and interface:

www.youtube.com/gorillacd/

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Details from Bariyanga’s death are now emerging- these photos were taken at the scene:

Bariyanga was found lying on his side surrounded by broken branches

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