Gorilla Groups in Kahuzi Biega National Park, Congo

Gorilla Groups in Kahuzi Biega NP. Kahuzi Biega National Park is a huge protected area in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s South Kivu Province. The park is on Kivu Lake’s western side, west of Bukavu town and the Rwandan border. The UNESCO World Heritage Site Kahuzi Biega National Park covers 6,000 square kilometers of lowland plains and mountains. The physical qualities and topography of the various areas of Kahuzi Biega National Park vary.

In a 7.4 km wide corridor, a short segment of the park goes through the Mitumba Mountain range in the Albertine rift basin. The corridor connects lowland and mountainous terrain. It has 600 square kilometers of hilly terrain in the park’s eastern sector. The rest of the park is full of lowland terrain and rivers Lugulu and Luka rivers drain it, which flow into the Lualaba Rivers. The national gets its name from two extinct volcanoes: Kahuzi (3,308 meters) and Biega (2,790 meters).

Kahuzi Biega National Park is home to a variety of animal species, including four subspecies of eastern lowland gorillas. A 2004 survey found that there are around 5,000 eastern lowland gorillas in the globe. Eastern lowland gorillas are among the largest living primates, with males reaching 1.85 meters and females reaching 1.6 meters. Males weigh 100 kg, while females weigh 210 kg.

About Lowland Gorillas

Eastern lowland gorillas in Kahuzi Biega National Park are similarly gregarious primates who tend to dwell in groups of 2-30 individuals. A dominant silverback leads each family group. A group also comprises many females and newborns that are their progeny. Silverbacks are the alpha males of the groups, emerging as the strongest in the gorilla group. They have the task of guarding their group against threats.

Young silverbacks are encouraged to leave their natal group and form their groups after they have reached a mature degree of group formation. This helps to reduce conflicts arising from the rivalry for the group’s leader.

During an eight-and-a-half-month gestation period, female eastern lowland gorillas give birth to one kid. Twins are incredibly rare in these gorillas, so when one is born, the entire community celebrates.

Gorilla Groups in Kahuzi Beiga National Park.

Kahuzi Biega National Park in Bukavu Congo is home to approximately nine families of eastern lowland gorillas. However, only five have undergone habituation and are ready for tracking. The gorilla habituation technique entails acclimating mountain gorillas to human presence. The following are the only five gorilla families in Kahuzi Biega National Park that tourists may hike with:

Mugahuka Gorilla Group

The Mugahuka gorilla family has one dominating silverback, whose name is Mugahuka. This gorilla family comprises both members of the Mugahuka and Chimanuka. However, due to tensions between the Chimanuka and Mugahuka gorilla families, family members were lost.

Females and newborns got lost as a result of the Chimanuka gorilla family’s victory. This left Mugahuka, the dominant silverback, alone in the family group. The Mugahuka gorilla family is suitable for less energetic walkers because it is the closest family to the park.

Chimanuka Gorilla Group.

You can also find the Chimanuka gorilla family, DRC’s second-largest lowland gorilla family in Kahuzi Biega National Park. Trekking this family, according to testimonies from the trekkers, is an exciting experience. This is attributable to its appealing inhabitants. The Chimanuka gorilla family comprises 19 members. Chimanuka, the dominant silverback in the group leads it thus the unusual name.

Mpungwe Gorilla Group

The Mpungwe gorilla family is the largest of the habituated gorilla groups and is located in the DRC’s Kahuzi Biega National Park. This is the most popular gorilla family and hikers who prefer seeing large groups of lowland gorillas visit its trails. The Mpungwe gorilla family consists of 21 members.

Bonnani Gorilla Group

The Bonnani gorilla group in Kahuzi Biega National Park is the smallest of the park’s lowland gorilla families in DRC. The Bonnani gorilla family, which consists of five members, is one of the park’s most recently habituated gorilla families.

Nganwa Gorilla Group

The Nganwa gorilla group is the fifth gorilla group in Kahuzi Biega National Park. The group is currently acclimating and is not yet available for gorilla trekking. The family comprises 10 people.

When is the best time for lowland gorilla trekking in Kahuzi Biega National Park?

Eastern lowland gorilla trekking is best done from June to September and January to mid-February in Kahuzi Biega National Park. Hiking lowland gorillas is possible at any time of year. However, the dry season is better. This is because vegetation is not so thick, easing hiking. Also, the trails are not muddy, which makes hiking easier.

How to get to Kahuzi Biega National Park.

Visitors can tour Virunga National Park after their gorilla trekking safari in Kahuzi Biega National Park. Tourists can go to Kahuzi-Biega via speed boat, which takes up to 3 hours, or by ferry, which takes up to 7 hours. Tourists from Rwanda may access the national park, which is 30 kilometers from Bukavu town, by crossing the Rwanda-Congo border at Ruzizi, which takes around 2-3 hours by car. By air, it is easier to land in Kigali, and then drive to Bukavu.