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In the Virunga Heartland, volcanic highland mountains shelter the last 700 mountain gorillas in the world. Chimpanzees, golden monkeys, forest elephants, and a rich variety of birds, reptiles and amphibians share this ecosystem of incredible biodiversity. In the face of the intense poverty, overpopulation, and political unrest this region has seen, AWF and its partners have redoubled their efforts to support the local wildlife and the ecotourism the region so badly needs.
Conserving Wildlife
Securing the future of mountain gorillas and their forest home.
AWF solutions in Virunga:
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Protecting Land
Uniting governments to promote conservation across international borders.
AWF solutions in Virunga:
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Empowering People
Empowering local wildlife managers and supporting ecotourism ventures.
AWF solutions in Virunga:
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Engaging You!
You can join us to save the last mountain gorillas. Click on these Solutions to become involved!
AWF solutions in Virunga:
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Because the Heartlands cover truly vast tracts of public and private land, cooperation by many public and private parties is required for success. Here are some of AWF's partners in the Virunga Heartland:
- Berggorilla & Regenwald Direkthilfe
- Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International (DFGFI)
- Frankfurt Zoological Society
- Institute of Tropical Forest Conservation (ITFC)
- Local Governments of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Uganda
- Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project (MGVP)
- Office Rwandais to Tourisme et des Parcs Nationaux (ORTPN)
- USAID / CARPE (Congo Basin Forest Partnership)
- Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS)
- World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)
More partners >
Philip Muruthi. African Heartlands: A Science-Based and Pragmatic Approach to Landscape Level Conservation in Africa. Technical Papers, 2005.
Joanna Elliott. Appendix III - Priority Adaptation Actions for Mountain Gorilla Conservation. Technical Papers, 2010.
J.J.R. Grimsdell. Ecological Monitoring. Technical Papers, 1978.
Richard Hatfield. Economic Value of the Bwindi and Virunga Gorilla Mountain Forests. Technical Papers, 2005.
Philip Muruthi. Human Wildlife Conflict: Lessons Learned From AWF's African Heartlands. Technical Papers, 2005.
David Western and J.R.R. Grimsdell. Measuring the Distribution of Animals in Relation to the Environment. Technical Papers, 1979.
Adam Henson, David Williams, Jef Dupain, Helen Gichohi, Philip Muruthi. The Heartland Conservation Process. Technical Papers, 2008.
Philip Muruthi. The Process of Preparing a General Management Plan for a Protected Area. Technical Papers, 2006.
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Quick Facts
Area: 577,634 hectares (2,230 square miles)
Key landmarks: Volcanoes National Park; Bwindi Impenetrable Forest; Mgahinga Gorilla National Park
Maps: this region | Africa
Staff in this Heartland
Eugène Rutagarama
Director, International Gorilla Conservation Program
Rwanda
Virunga Wildlife
Mountain Gorilla
The world's remaining mountain gorillas live within four national parks, split in two regions that are 45 kilometers (28 miles) apart.
One population of mountain gorillas inhabits the Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda. A census in 2006 recorded 302 gorillas here.
The second population of mountain gorillas is found in a mountainous region referred to as the Virungas, which includes Mgahinga Gorilla National Park (Uganda), Volcanoes National Park (Rwanda) and Virunga National Park (Democratic Republic of Congo). A census conducted in 2010 showed 480 gorillas live in the Virungas.
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