“The mountain gorillas were a most welcome source of good news in 2018 and it’s only getting better!” the park said in a statement, adding that it was “thrilled” with the new arrivals.
The park currently counts 604 individuals, compared with 395 in 2000, according to Congolese news website ActuCongo. They comprise about 60 percent of Africa’s estimated total of around 1,000 Gorillas. Virunga National Park, Africa’s oldest nature reserve and a UNESCO World Heritage site, is is a 7,800 km2 sized National Park spanning from the Voluminous Virunga Mountains in the south, to the Rwenzori Mountains in the north, in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, bordering Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda and Rwenzori Mountains National Park and Queen Elizabeth National Park in Uganda
In 2010 Kinshasa, granted permits to Western oil groups to explore concessions along large portions of the reserve, and last month the government green-lighted the plan.Global Witness, which campaigns against corruption and environmental abuse, called for a halt to the project, saying it would have “catastrophic consequences” for the environment.