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By Patrick Mapenzi
After nearly twenty-one months without ecological monitoring due to the deteriorating security situation in South Kivu, teams from Kahuzi-Biega National Park (PNKB) have re-established contact with the silverback gorilla Mpungwe and his family. Located on November 4 and 5, 2026, in the Tshivanga sector, near Mount Bugulumiza, this group of Eastern lowland gorillas is the first family to have been located by park staff since field monitoring patrols were suspended in February 2025. The renewed contact marks an important step in efforts to conserve this threatened species.
The group was located following a meticulous tracking operation. Park rangers examined several signs of the gorillas’ presence in the forest vegetation, including overnight nests, fresh footprints and recent droppings. These observations eventually led the team to the great apes in a wooded area of the Tshivanga sector, following several months without direct monitoring.
During the mission, fourteen individuals were counted, including Mpungwe, several adults and two young gorillas reported to be in good health. This number is lower than the sixteen individuals recorded in the family before monitoring activities were suspended in February 2025. Despite this difference, the animals displayed calm behaviour, continuing to move through the forest and feed without showing any apparent signs of stress in the presence of the patrol team.
Beyond the reunion, this sighting provides the park’s management with new data to update monitoring records for Mpungwe’s family, better understand changes in its population and adapt long-term surveillance methods. It also offers an initial reference point for assessing the impact of the prolonged period during which teams were unable to conduct regular ecological monitoring in the field.
However, the mission also revealed persistent threats to the gorillas’ natural habitat. As they moved through the Tshivanga sector, trackers discovered several illegal installations attributed to poachers and used for the unlawful felling and sawing of timber. These findings highlight the risks facing the forest and its wildlife when the presence of monitoring teams is reduced. Poaching and illegal exploitation of forest resources therefore remain additional pressures on the habitat of a species classified as critically endangered.
In a statement attributed to the management of PNKB, the operation is part of the park’s gradual and adaptive resumption of activities. “Our teams will return to the field to ensure both the protection of wildlife and the preservation of its exceptional habitat,” the park management stated, highlighting the need to strengthen field operations. This renewed effort is supported by the Congolese Institute for Nature Conservation (ICCN) and strategic partners, including the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the German development bank KfW.
The renewed contact with Mpungwe’s family therefore opens a new chapter in ecological monitoring at Kahuzi-Biega National Park. Future operations are expected to help gradually restore surveillance in priority areas, strengthen anti-poaching efforts and protect the natural habitats of Eastern lowland gorillas. Beyond the situation of this particular family, the broader challenge remains the long-term conservation of this UNESCO World Heritage Site and its exceptional biodiversity.
