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Born on 3 January, the Bageni twins have reached two months, marking a rare and encouraging milestone.

On 3 January 2026, Virunga’s community trackers recorded the birth of twin mountain gorillas in the Bageni family. This first birth of the year brings the Bageni family to 59 members, the largest gorilla group in the Park.

The twins have reached two months of age — a rare and encouraging milestone.
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Returning from a recent field mission, Jacques, Head of Gorilla Monitoring, shared a reassuring update: observations indicate that both infants are developing well. Their mother continues to show remarkable resilience, caring for and nursing the twins despite the additional demands this represents.
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Monitoring teams remain present in the field each day, providing close observation and support to give the twins the best possible chance of survival — work that will continue over the coming months.
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For now, the infants remain closely attached to their mother. In the months ahead, early signs of independent movement while she rests would mark an important step in their development.

Sebutimbiri of the Mapuwa family gave birth to a male infant, the second birth recorded this year in the Mikeno sector.

On 5 January 2026, Sebutimbiri, a female from the Mapuwa family, gave birth to a male infant. The Mapuwa family now counts 28 individuals, marking the second birth recorded this year in the Mikeno sector.

On 5 February 2026, Bagambe of the Rugendo family gave birth to a male infant, the third mountain gorilla birth recorded this year in Virunga.

On 5 February 2026, Virunga’s community trackers observed that Bagambe, a female from the Rugendo family, gave birth to a male infant.

With this birth, the Rugendo family now numbers 20 individuals, matching the Humba family and making both the fourth-largest groups in the Mikeno sector.

This marks the third mountain gorilla birth recorded in Virunga National Park this year.

On 17 February 2026, Seminane of the Munyaga family welcomed a female infant. This fourth birth of the year highlights a promising reproductive trend across Virunga’s mountain gorilla families.

On 17 February 2026, Virunga’s community trackers observed that Seminane, a female from the Munyaga family, was carrying her newborn female infant.

With this birth, the Munyaga family now numbers 13 individuals. Despite having four silverbacks—a high number given its size—it remains the smallest group in the Mikeno sector.

This marks the fourth mountain gorilla birth recorded in the Park this year, each in a different family, reflecting a positive reproductive trend across the monitored groups.

On 20 February 2026, Bilali of the Munyaga family gave birth to a female infant, just three days after the previous birth in the group, bringing the family to 14 members.

On 20 February 2026, Virunga’s community trackers directly witnessed Bilali of the Munyaga family giving birth to a female infant — a remarkable moment that reflects the dedication of our field teams and their close monitoring of this iconic species.

Coming just three days after the previous birth in the same family, this new arrival brings the Munyaga group to 14 individuals, highlighting encouraging growth and making the close succession of these two births particularly notable.

The Masibo family welcomes its first birth since forming in October 2025, bringing the group to 15 individuals as it continues to settle in the Mikeno sector.

On March 1st, female Serundori gave birth to a male infant, welcomed into the Masibo family.

Formed in October 2025 after splitting from the Kabirizi family, the group is led by the silverback Masibo, who left with 13 individuals. This is the first birth recorded since the family’s formation, bringing the group to 15.

It marks the sixth birth recorded in Virunga National Park since January 2026, across five different families— an encouraging sign as the Masibo family continues to settle in the Mikeno sector.

A rare twin birth in Virunga’s Baraka family brings the group to 19. The two-week-old twins are being closely monitored.

A rare twin birth has been recorded in the Baraka family in the Mikeno sector of Virunga National Park. The twins, believed to be a female and a male,  are approximately two weeks old and are being closely monitored by field teams. These births increase the Baraka family to 19 individuals and mean that 9 new babies have been born within the habituated mountain gorilla population at Virunga National Park in just the first three months of 2026.

A newborn was observed in the Lulengo family on March 27, bringing the number of gorilla infants recorded in 2026 to ten — compared to eight in 2025.

The monitoring of mountain gorilla groups has brought encouraging news so far this year. On March 27, during a routine patrol, community trackers observed a newborn within the Lulengo family. The mother was identified as Bazirushaka, while it was not possible to determine the infant’s sex at the time of observation.

This brings the number of gorilla infants recorded since the start of 2026 to ten — compared to eight in 2025 — reflecting encouraging signs for the mountain gorilla population in the Park.

Katuku of the Bageni family gave birth to a male infant, the second birth recorded in the group this year following the twins in January.

On May 8, community trackers observed a newborn in the Bageni family during a monitoring patrol.

Katuku, a 9-year-old subadult female, gave birth to her first infant, a male. The birth is the second recorded in this family this year, following the birth of twins in January. It brings the troop to 60 individuals, with the Bageni family remaining the largest in the Park.⁠

It is the ninth birth recorded in Virunga National Park in 2026, occurring across seven different families.⁠