Dear John, LCA mourns the death of Ndakasi, the beloved orphaned mountain gorilla who lived at the Senkwekwe Center in Virunga National Park. Ndakasi was a survivor of the 2007 Virunga mountain gorilla massacre. Park rangers found two month old Ndakasi clinging to her dead mother's breast after an attack by armed militia hours earlier. Caretaker Andre Bauma held the tiny orphan baby all night for warmth and comfort. The trauma of losing her family combined with a long rehabilitation time meant Ndakasi was not able to return to the wild. Ndakasi lived her life at the Senkwekwe Center for orphaned gorillas in Virunga National Park. In 2019, Ndakasi made headlines when she posed for a selfie with one of her caretakers from Virunga's anti-poaching unit. Read more here. Ndakasi died in the arms of Andre, her caretaker and friend, at 14 years old after a prolonged illness. | |
