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Rewilded Gorilla Gives Birth in Historic Virunga First
By @sharedot · · 7 pages
- Positive
- Conservation
- Wildlife
- Gorillas
Lulingu, rescued from the illegal wildlife trade as an infant and returned to the wild, has given birth in Virunga National Park.
A Baby Born Wild to a Once-Orphaned Mother
On May 21st, in her home range on Mount Tshiaberimu in Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lulingu — one of the first-ever eastern lowland gorillas successfully returned to the wild — gave birth. The father is a wild silverback living on the mountain, a sign the young female has fully integrated into the wild population.
From Trafficked Infant to First-Time Mother
The journey makes the milestone extraordinary. According to Good News Network, rescuers recovered Lulingu at just 18 months old after she was taken from her family and sold into the illegal wildlife trade, making her the youngest orphaned gorilla ever brought to GRACE, the world's only sanctuary for rescued eastern lowland gorillas. A gorilla named Pinga became her surrogate mother before Lulingu joined the family group later rewilded with three other females at the end of 2024.
Healthy Signs Closely Monitored
The evidence of success is detailed and hands-on. Good News Network reports that a monitoring team has tracked the four females since their December 2024 release, watching their feeding behavior and even collecting urine samples non-invasively from leaves, using human pregnancy tests to detect pregnancy hormones. Dr. Cedric Kibengo, a field veterinarian with Gorilla Doctors, said none of the four females has needed veterinary treatment since rewilding, and both mother and infant are healthy and doing well.
A Proven Pattern of Species Recovery
The gorilla milestone fits a wider pattern now being documented. 1News reports that New Zealand's breeding program for the wētāpunga, the country's heaviest insect, has seen tens of thousands bred at Butterfly Creek and Auckland Zoo, moving the species from Nationally Endangered to Nationally Recovering, with 11,000 released last year. As GRACE director Katie Fawcett put it of the gorillas, per Good News Network: this is a milestone, another historic first for eastern lowland gorilla conservation.
What Comes Next for Lulingu's Family
Rangers are optimistic: Good News Network cites park ranger Benoit Ishaba, who has seen Lulingu nursing, cradling and playing with her baby, patient with the group's curious young gorilla. At least one of the other rewilded females may be pregnant and could give birth in the coming weeks or months, a critical genetic boost for the isolated Mount Tshiaberimu population. Re:wild's Mary Brown, per Good News Network, called each healthy infant a sign of resilience, recovery and what long-term collaboration makes possible.