"Cradled in the arms of their mother, Mafuko, the tiny twins clung to her body for warmth in the forest clearing in Virunga national park, in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Katutu, head of gorilla monitoring in Virunga, has seen dozens of newborns in his 15 years as a ranger. But, he tells the Guardian, even he was touched by the sight of the fragile infant males, who face serious obstacles if they are to become silverbacks one day."
"The young males are healthy for now, rangers say, but the subspecies has high rates of infant mortality with about a quarter falling victim to disease, trauma or infanticide. Mafuko gave birth to twins in 2016, but neither survived more than a few days. The males have been born into the Bageni family, Virunga's largest group of mountain gorillas, which now has 59 members."
Two newborn male mountain gorillas, twins, were observed cradled by their mother, Mafuko, in a forest clearing in Virunga National Park, eastern DRC. Rangers monitor the mother and infants daily since their sighting on 3 January, with specialist veterinarians on standby. Twin births are extremely rare among mountain gorillas and carry significant survival challenges; the first four weeks are most critical. The subspecies experiences high infant mortality, with about a quarter lost to disease, trauma or infanticide. Mafuko previously birthed twins in 2016 who died within days. The twins belong to the Bageni family, which now numbers 59 members. Mountain gorilla populations have risen from about 250 in the 1970s to over 1,000 today.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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