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Mountain Gorilla Sanctuary

The Gorilla Orphans Project

Virunga National Park’s headquarters at Rumangabo is home to the Senkwekwe Centre, the world’s only facility for orphaned mountain gorillas. With expert staff who provide daily care for the orphans, who were each separated from their family due to the impact of poaching, the Senkwekwe Centre is a unique sanctuary offering the gorillas the chance to lead happy and secure lives in their forested enclosure.

History of the Project

In early 2009, Park Rangers regained control of Virunga after a period of armed conflict. Shortly after, Park staff began raising awareness of two young orphan mountain gorillas who were in their care. Orphans Ndeze and Ndakasi had been forced by the circumstances of war to live in a tiny compound in the nearby city of Goma. Unlike their natural environment, Goma is heavily polluted, noisy, and largely built on a lava flow devoid of vegetation.

Once the Southern Sector was once again secure, a team set out to raise money to build a care facility at the Park headquarters in Rumangabo. The site chosen for the facility was perfect: lush forest, teaming with wildlife, expansive – and safe.

At the end of 2010, two more orphan mountain gorillas, Maisha and Koboko, were transferred to the Senkwekwe Center. They came from Rwanda where they had been living in a small facility. The four gorillas settled in nicely and soon became a tightly knit family. Sadly, both Koboko and Maisha are no longer with us, having passed away due to health complications.

The circumstances which led to Matabishi being abandoned in a cornfield in June 2013 are unknown, though it is suspected due his injuries that he had been captured and restrained by poachers who sought to trade him illegally.

Since recovering from his injuries at the Senkwekwe Center, Matabishi has continually grown in both confidence and stature, leading to his natural self-proclamation as the group’s dominant gorilla.

In 2017, Rangers found Mazuka caught in a snare. She had been trapped for a few days, her foot was badly hurt and septic and needed to be amputated, despite the tremendous efforts of our Rangers and gorilla doctors. Even with her disability, Mazuka had three happy years at Senkwekwe Center, before passing away in March 2021 following a short illness.

Sadly the Senkwekwe Center lost another mountain gorilla in September 2021, Ndakasi having succumbed to prolonged illness. There remain two gorillas at the center, Matabishi and Ndeze, who are enjoying a semi-wild enclosure that better reflects their wild habitat, constructed with the help of the GRACE foundation in 2022.

Although Virunga’s Park Rangers make great efforts to reduce the threats that mountain gorillas face, the Senkwekwe Center is always ready to take in mountain gorillas who become orphaned through snares, conflict or by any other means.

  • An image of an orphaned mountain gorilla
    Ndeze

    In 2007, Ndeze’s mother, Safari, was brutally murdered, along with six other adult gorillas, including silverback Senkwekwe.

    This unthinkable crime came to be known as the Rugendo Massacre, and was featured as Newsweek’s cover story on 5th August, 2007. It was the worst gorilla killing in the Park’s history.

    Ndeze was found by Rangers several days later clinging to the back of her brother. Because Ndeze was too young to survive without her mother’s milk, vets had to intervene and rescue her. Carer Andre Bauma and his colleagues became vitally important in giving Ndeze the security and love she needed. Ndeze and Ndakasi were introduced at temporary facilities in Goma, where they quickly formed an intense bond. In 2009, the pair were transferred to the newly built Senkwekwe Center, where Ndeze remains to this day.

    Photo credit: Brent Stirton
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  • An image of an orphaned mountain gorilla
    Matabishi

    Matabishi was discovered alone in a field outside Virunga National Park in late June 2013. It is suspected that he had been held captive by poachers, as he had injuries on his back, possibly from a rope restraint. Virunga’s Rangers slept in the cornfield to protect the infant until the Gorilla Doctor team arrived to transport him for a medical check at the Senkwekwe Centre.

    At the time, Virunga’s Deputy Director and Chief Warden of the Southern Sector named the orphan “Matabishi,” which means “bonus” in Swahili: as Park Rangers found that no other families appeared to be missing members, so Matabishi was an unaccounted for extra.

    Matabishi was carefully introduced to the Senkwekwe Centre’s other gorillas, and quickly became part of the family, being instantly accepted by the matriarch, Maisha. Maisha sadly passed away in summer 2017 due to health complications.

    Photo credit: Virunga National Park
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  • An image of an orphaned mountain gorilla
    Ndakasi

    Ndakasi was two months old when she was found clinging to her murdered mother. Thanks to the loving care of Senkwekwe Centre staff and veterinary experts, she survived.

    In June 2007, Rangers found Ndakasi’s mother dead, having been shot at close range. Ndakasi – barely two months old – was found clinging to her mother. She was badly dehydrated, in shock, and very frightened.

    André Bauma was called in to try to keep her alive through the night, although no one thought she would make it. Through a torrential rain storm that lasted all night, Andre held baby Ndakasi tightly to his bare chest to keep her warm and give her comfort. Miraculously, she made it through, growing into a happy, healthy and boisterous adolescent.

    Sadly Ndakasi succumbed to a prolonged illness in September 2021, after 12 years of sanctuary at the Senkwekwe Center.

    Photo credit: Brooke Reynolds
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  • An image of an orphaned mountain gorilla
    Mazuka

    In June 2017, Rangers discovered a baby female mountain gorilla caught in a poacher’s snare. The baby had suffered a severe foot injury from the snare and was in a critical condition, having been alone in the jungle for several days.

    It was hoped that she could be treated and reunited with her family, but after closely examining her wound, they found the infection had already set in. There was no choice but to perform a field amputation of her foot.

    The procedure was a success, and the orphan was immediately taken to the Senkwekwe Center. Over the next twelve hours, the team worked to stabilize the baby gorilla, and despite many close calls, she pulled through thanks to the care of the Senkwekwe team and the Gorilla Doctors. Originally named Yalala – the young gorilla was renamed ‘Mazuka’ after her miraculous recovery – her name means ‘resurrection’ in Swahili.

    Mazuka had three happy years at Senkwekwe Center, before passing away in March 2021 following a short illness.

    Photo credit: Brent Stirton
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The Daily Routine

As gorillas are large powerful creatures, it can be a difficult task to care for them – and a clear daily routine is important for the orphans.

Wake-up begins around 6:00 am when the gorillas begin to play and receive their breakfast. They are let out into the garden at around 7:30 am where they spend the majority of their day playing and eating. When they were much younger, constant care was needed as they were still very young to be on their own, but today they can be left free without a caretaker within the garden.
At 4:00 pm it is time to return to the enclosure for the night. This entails a bribe of more food to get the orphans back from their playground. Here they remain until the following morning. Dinner comes in the form of porridge with added nutrients and probiotics which is served at around 5:00 pm.

They are put to bed with a bunch of fresh leaves for them to build a basic nest. The leaves come in the form of a wild celery, which is also edible.

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