Rwanda: the 20th Kwita Izina ceremony was held in Kinigi on 5 September 2025, in a magnificent setting dominated by two giant gorillas

Forty baby mountain gorillas were "named" at the foot of Volcanoes National Park. But behind this celebration lies a sad reality: their existence is threatened by overcrowding in their habitat. So much so that half of these baby gorillas may not reach adulthood because of violent conflicts between families.

The growing mountain gorilla population (more than 1,000 today), in a habitat that humans have halved, means that the different groups meet more often in a smaller space.

According to Eugène Mutangana, conservation management expert at the Rwanda Development Board (RDB), silverback males "with limited living space fight each other trying to protect their territory".

In the losing group, the young are sometimes "eliminated" by the winner. About half of the young gorillas born over the past decade have been killed in this way.

The only way to solve this problem is to enlarge their habitat. "Rwanda has therefore decided to extend the gorillas' habitat by 23% by relocating some 3,400 families outside the Virunga massif, with compensation," says Eugène Mutangana. But the operation could take more than another decade.

Find out more (in French) 👉: https://www.goodplanet.info/2025/09/08/gorilles-en-habitat-surpeuple-au-rwanda-la-moitie-des-bebes-tues-par-les-males-dominants/