VIRUNGA NATIONAL PARK

Virunga National Park of DRC is the Africa’s first national park, most biodiverse protected area, home to over one thousand species of mammal, bird, reptile, and amphibian as well as 1/3 of the world’s endangered mountain gorillas.

This park was founded as Park Albert, the first national park to be established on the African continent. It was founded primarily to protect the mountain gorillas living in the forests of the Virunga massif.

The Virunga National Park is located on the eastern edge of the Congo Basin, the world’s second-largest tropical rainforest, Virunga has become known as the park of fire and ice for its diverse habitats ranging from the Rwenzori peaks to savanna and volcanic plains. Despite being a UNESCO world heritage site since 1979 and world heritage site in danger since 1994, Virunga is constantly threatened by war, poaching and illegal activities as well as unpreventable natural disasters.

Virunga National Park is the only protected area on Earth home to three taxa of great apes: the mountain gorilla, the eastern lowland gorilla and the eastern chimpanzee. Park Rangers and staff strive to provide conditions which support the growth of their populations, which are threatened by conflict, habitat loss and poaching, leaving them in danger of extinction.

Virunga National Park is home to over 200 mammals including forest and savanna elephants, hippos, okapis, lions, and mountain gorillas. 21 species are endemic of Albertine Rift.

The Virunga National Park’s 3,000 square miles (7,800 square kilometers) is comprised of four sectors – northern, central, southern and lake sector – each with an unrivaled diversity of landscapes and ecosystems.