Gorilla Baby Boom Uganda Bwindi Impenetrable National Park with 5 baby gorillas in just 6 weeks

Gorilla baby boom Uganda Bwindi Impenetrable National Park with 5 baby gorillas in just 6 weeks. Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is having a gorilla baby boom or literally many births in a short time with 5 baby gorillas in just 6 weeks. Uganda has so far had seven baby gorillas since January 2020 compared to only three received in the whole of 2019.

In just six weeks, there was an unprecedented uptick of 5 baby gorilla births in Bwindi Forest National Park. The baby gorillas are born to different gorilla families in the different sectors of Bwindi. It is amazing to have this baby boom in Bwindi because it is a rare occurrence for such many gorillas to be born within just a few weeks.

The latest baby gorilla born in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park was in the Buhoma sector noticed when the staff of Uganda Wildlife Authority rose to yet another ecstatic moment of a new baby gorilla. The young baby comes from the Rushegura gorilla family born from Adult Female Ruterana increasing the family membership to 18 gorillas.

This takes the tally of new births in the Bwindi forest to 5 in just six weeks! The newborn marks Ruterana’s third offspring. Ruterana was born Jan, 1st, 2002 making her 18 years of age. These particular birthmarks Ruterana’s third offspring.

Latest baby gorilla born in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

Ruterana particularly has not had a smooth tide with keeping her offsprings alive. When she was 12 years, her first offspring born September 13, 2012, sadly succumbed to Pneumonia while only a fortnight old.

Rushegura family this year has been blessed with multiple births. On August 27, 2020, Kibande of the Rushengura gorilla family welcomed her second birth. The Kibande’s new baby marks her fifth surviving offspring. She is also the most senior lady and kingmaker of the family.

Not long ago in April 2020, the Rushaga sector registered the birth of two babies in Muyambi and Nshongi gorilla groups. According to the Chief Warden BMCA Guma Nelson, the new babies then were thought to have been born on April 25 and May 1, 2020, respectively.

Mother Kabagyenyi and Silverback Bweza of Nshongi were observed by the monitoring team of rangers tightly guarding the baby gorilla while in the Muyambi group, silverback Muyambi was often seen on patrol to decisively protect the family’s new entrant. Adult Female Kabagyenyi joined the Nshongi family from a wild group when she was a sub-adult.

Gorilla baby boom Uganda Bwindi Impenetrable National Park

The Muyambi Group

Muyambi group on the other hand is the newest group that opened to tourism in 2019. It has six family members. The unnamed mother joined the group from the wild. Muyambi was an adult member of the Mubare family but split away from Mubare found a family of his own.

The Executive Director UWA Sam Mwandha observed that “the birth of new mountain gorillas is testimony to Uganda’s successful conservation efforts. With enhanced integrity of protected areas, there has been a general increase in wildlife populations in Uganda,” he said.

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature classifies the mountain gorilla as an endangered species. Uganda wildlife Authority continues to be committed to the conservation and protection of gorillas to ensure that the population increases despite the Covid19 interruptions.

Mountain Gorilla trekking in Uganda – Gorilla baby boom Uganda

Gorilla trekking in Uganda is more preferable because of the affordable costs which are US$ 700 for a gorilla trekking permit for foreign nonresidents, US$ 600 for foreign residents, and UGX 250,000 for East African citizens. This is way less than the US$ 1500 for a permit in Rwanda. In the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo, a gorilla permit costs US$450, however, the area where the park is located has in previous years been highly affected by rebel groups.

To trek gorillas in Uganda, one requires to be of age 15 and above and as well have purchased a gorilla trekking permit from the Uganda Wildlife Authority through an Uganda tour operator or individually.

Every day, a total of 8 tourists trek each of the 19 wild gorilla families in Uganda. Trekking starts at 8:00 am with a briefing on the guidelines and allocation of a specific gorilla family to trek. Gorilla trekking in Uganda takes an unpredictable time as the gorillas keep moving through the forest. You could see the gorillas in 30 minutes or after several hours.

After meeting an allocated gorilla family a maximum of 1 hour is spent watching the family interact. It is an amazing experience and you are allowed to take several pictures and videos using non-flash photography cameras.

Mountain gorilla trekking in Uganda can also be done in Mgahinga Gorilla National Park with the same requirements and regulations as those of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park. With the gorilla baby boom in Uganda, it is such a good time to book for Uganda gorilla safari for the next dry season which is from December to February and experience the liveliness of the Bwindi forest.