Birth Announcement: Newborn Gorilla Twins

We are very happy to share this piece of news: twin Mountain Gorillas were born earlier this month in Rwanda's Volcanoes National Park. During more than 40 years of gorilla monitoring in Rwanda, only five cases of twins have been recorded. The proud mother is Kabatwa, who belongs to the smaller Hirwa group (as noted in this month's Hideaway Report, Mr. Harper had a chance to spend some quality time with Dian Fossey's Susa group last fall). Thus far she appears to be doing an excellent job of caring for her two males.

Ian Redmond, chairman of the Ape Alliance coalition and himself the father of twin boys, said: "Gorilla mothers usually have only one baby every four years or so - which is one reason why they are so vulnerable - so twins give a rare double gain in one birth. But coping with two infants is a challenge for any parent - as my wife and I know from experience - so I wish Kabatwa, and the boys, the best of luck in the coming weeks and months." Rwanda's President Paul Kagame will preside over their naming ceremony this June. They will be joined by at least 13 other newborns and unnamed gorillas.

Fewer than 800 Mountain Gorillas remain in the wild. We found a wonderful description of their discovery on the Gorilla Doctors blog, as well as some video of the happy family here: