12-year-old mountain gorilla Ndala was spotted with her newborn during routine monitoring of the Humba family in October 2026. (Virunga National Park via SWNS)
By Dean Murray
An endangered 12-year-old mountain gorilla has become a first-time mother after giving birth to a male infant.
Ndala was spotted with her newborn on Oct. 6 during routine monitoring of the Humba family in Virunga National Park, in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
It is the second birth recorded in the family in 2026 and the 16th among mountain gorillas monitored in the Mikeno sector since January.
Ndala was spotted with her newborn during routine monitoring. (Virunga National Park via SWNS)
The Humba group now contains a total of 19 individuals, including one silverback, a blackback, five adult females, three subadults and nine juveniles and infants.
Mountain gorillas are classed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, with an estimated 1,075 remaining in the wild.
Field teams will continue to monitor Ndala and her infant closely during the newborn’s first weeks.