Take a closer look at life inside Virunga: An extraordinary look inside the home of some of the world’s last mountain gorillas

For nearly 20 years, National Geographic Explorer Brent Stirton has documented life inside the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Virunga National Park, one of the most complex and dangerous conservation areas on Earth. His photographs reveal what it takes to protect some of the world’s last mountain gorillas, capturing moments of loss and determination amid ongoing conflict.

Take a closer look at life inside Virunga:
An extraordinary look inside the home of some of the world’s last mountain gorillas

National Geographic Explorer Brent Stirton has photographed life inside Virunga National Park over the course of nearly two decades—chronicling stories of violence and resilience.

Conservation rangers from a Virunga National Park anti-poaching unit work with locals to evacuate the bodies of nine severely endangered mountain gorillas killed in the park. They carry Senkwekwe, a silver-back alpha male, the leader of the group. He and seven females were shot and killed.

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For a hundred years, the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Virunga National Park has protected a remarkable 3,000 square-mile stretch of nature that includes lush forests, active volcanoes, and rare wildlife including elephants, hippos, lions, and some of the last remaining mountain gorillas.
But also lurking inside the southern part of the park is the threat of violence from paramilitary organizations and insurgent rebel groups. That’s because the park borders some of Africa’s bloodiest conflict zones. In 1994, the Rwandan Genocide created roughly four million refugees, many of whom sought refuge in the park just across the border. Today, half the park is controlled by the Rwandan-backed rebel group M23.
Protecting Virunga requires 800 highly skilled park rangers willing to risk their lives for a dangerous cause; about 240 park rangers have died in the last 20 years while on duty in the park.

Over the course of 18 years, photojournalist and National Geographic Explorer Brent Stirton has made 13 trips to document the promise and peril of Virunga National Park. His images from in the park and in other wildlife refuges have been widely published, including on the cover of National Geographic.
In Virunga he’s followed how, despite facing immense challenges, the park has persisted. Virunga has helped protect some of the world’s few remaining mountain gorillas, a global population that contained as few as 300 individuals in 2007 and now numbers over a thousand. The park’s leadership has also spearheaded initiatives to create sustainable hydroelectric power and small-scale farms that give the local community financial alternatives to extractive industries like mining and charcoal production.
To honor a hundred years of the park’s resilience, Stirton has created a photo book featuring images taken inside Virunga’s borders. They show some of Stirton’s most moving images from the park: a processional for a mortally wounded silverback gorilla, the powerful bond between an orphaned mountain gorilla and her caretaker, the human toll of political conflict, and the grit it takes to advocate for conservation.
Stirton’s book will be available online starting September 1, 2025 and can be ordered here.
This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

How did you begin working in Virunga National Park?
In 2007, I was working for Newsweek covering conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Myself and journalist Scott Johnson were given an assignment to cover park rangers who underwent extensive training to work in what’s essentially a combat zone. Within days there, we heard that nine gorillas had been killed. I didn’t know at the time there were fewer than 300 mountain gorillas in the world, and nine dead was a major loss.
We trekked deep into the forest and found several dead females. One of the rangers found a baby, still alive, and tucked her into his shirt. It was quite cold at the time. I didn’t know I would continue photographing this baby for the next 13 years, including the day she died.

Moonlit images of active volcanoes, Mount Nyiragongo and Nyamuragira, within Virunga National Park. Virunga has some of the most active volcanoes in Africa and, in times of peace, offers unique tourism trips to Nyiragongo.

Many of your photos feature the park’s mountain gorillas. What is it like to see these animals up close?
I think the most profound impression is how human they are. It’s like being looked at by a person. Silverback gorillas, which are so incredibly powerful, are incredibly gentle.

Even when they exhibit aggression, they’re just trying to protect their families.
They’re also very funny to watch. People who look after them know their individual characteristics. I always say if I had unlimited funds, I would like to offer everyone in the world the ability to experience nature firsthand. When you do, you see why they’re worth protecting.
They have every right to be on this planet. The same rights we do.

Endangered mountain gorillas have shown incredible resilience, despite the long-standing conflict in their habitat between Rwandan-backed M23 rebels and Congolese army forces. Their numbers have even slowly grown. Considering the conflict and their extreme susceptibility to human illness, this is considered something of a conservation miracle.