Conservationists monitor gorillas after Ebola outbreak in DR Congo — Mongabay
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, conservationists are on heightened alert for eastern gorillas following a new Ebola outbreak declared in May 2026. As of September 22, the country had recorded 7,773 confirmed human cases of the disease and 3,759 deaths, Mongabay reports.
There have been no reports of suspected or confirmed Ebola cases among eastern gorillas, which are primarily endemic to the DR Congo. At the same time, a previous outbreak in 2002–2003 in the Republic of the Congo led to the widespread spread of the virus among western lowland gorillas and killed around 5,000 animals.
Behavioral ecologist Damien Caillaud, who witnessed that outbreak, said Ebola spreads rapidly in gorilla groups through close physical contact during rest, play and grooming. According to him, once one animal is infected, nearly all gorillas in the group may disappear within several weeks.
Status of gorilla populations
Gorillas are among humans’ closest relatives: their common ancestor lived approximately 8–10 million years ago. The International Union for Conservation of Nature classifies eastern gorillas as endangered and western gorillas as critically endangered.
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The latest assessment of eastern gorillas showed a mixed situation: some populations remain stable, but the number of Grauer’s gorillas has declined by approximately 60% over the past 20 years. Jessie Junker, a researcher at the Senckenberg Museum of Natural History in Görlitz, said conservation measures have become decisive for the survival of these animals in some regions.
Twins in Virunga and women’s patrols
In Virunga National Park in the DR Congo, two pairs of twins were recorded among mountain gorillas in 2026. Twin births in this subspecies occur in less than 1% of cases. Jacques Katutu, the park’s head of gorilla monitoring, called two such births within three months an extraordinary event.
In southeastern Nigeria, women’s groups patrol areas around the Afi Mountain wildlife sanctuary, home to critically endangered Cross River gorillas and endangered Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzees. According to local community representatives, women from two villages have also stopped illegal timber-sale deals.
