Despite the happy photos of gorillas that posed with a ranger for a selfie, the Virunga National Park, located in eastern Congo, is one of the most dangerous places on the continent, where flora and fauna mix with poachers and local rebel militias.
A pair of mountain gorillas posed as if they were human for a selfie with a forest ranger in the Virunga National Park, in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the photograph went viral on social networks.
The two gorillas imitated for the portrait the way in which the forest rangers pose, and they obtained a position very similar to one of their caretakers, which caused astonishment among the cybernauts. Even one of them got up on his hind legs and looked at the camera profile.
“One more day in the office,” wrote one of the gorilla protectors, who are responsible for preventing poachers from bursting into the park. It is estimated that, until 2018, there were about 1,000 specimens of mountain gorillas, almost all settled on the African continent.
However, the history of the place and the gorillas are not as cheerful as the famous photo. Virunga is the oldest park established in Africa and one of the most diverse in the world: there are up to a third of the total mountain gorillas that exist in the world, considered an endangered species and one of the main attractions, as well as an active volcano, Mount Nyiragongo.
The park ranger team to take care of the 7,800 square kilometers account of the park has a staff of 600 people, who are highly prepared and “risk their lives day by day,” according to the official website of the Park. The conditions to protect the flora and fauna of the place are not the safest, being located in one of the most volatile areas of the continent, in addition to natural concerns.
The park was closed to the public from June 2018 until February of this year, due to the fact that last June, a group of local rebels killed up to 12 forest rangers in ten months of confrontations with militias and smugglers. In addition, two British tourists were kidnapped, although they were released after a day of detention.
Throughout the history of the park, up to 179 rangers have died doing their job. Practically all the staff of the place is of Congolese origin. But not only hunters or local militias have killed the protectors of the park. Last March, a man died due to the attacks he received from a hippopotamus. Another was struck by lightning.
The park is also one of the most diverse in the world: a 2012 census counted some 218 species of different mammals, as well as more than 700 species of birds, 109 types of reptiles and another 22 species of primates in the area.