Kahuzi-Biega

Kahuzi-Biega National Park, established in 1970 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1980, protects a vast area of tropical montane and lowland rainforest in South Kivu Province, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the western edge of the Albertine Rift. Covering approximately 6,000 square kilometres across two distinct sectors—the highland sector around Mount Kahuzi (3,308 m) and Mount Biega (2,790 m) and the lowland Itebero sector connected by a wildlife corridor—the park is most famous for sheltering the world's largest remaining population of the critically endangered eastern lowland gorilla (Grauer's gorilla, Gorilla beringei graueri). The park's extraordinary biodiversity and towering ancient forests represent one of the planet's most important conservation areas.

Kahuzi-Biega is home to approximately 250 eastern lowland gorillas—roughly a third of the world's remaining population of this critically endangered subspecies. Several gorilla families in the highland sector have been habituated for tourism. Chimpanzees are also present in large numbers. Forest elephants range through the lowland sector. The park holds 349 bird species, including numerous Albertine Rift endemics such as the Grauer's broadbill, Chapin's flycatcher, and Congo bay owl. Okapis have been recorded in the lowland Itebero sector. The highland forest harbours tree hyraxes, giant forest hogs, African golden cats, and leopards.

The park's highland sector supports a remarkable sequence of vegetation zones from submontane rainforest below 1,600 metres through montane forest and bamboo zones to Hagenia-Hypericum woodland and sub-alpine moorland above 2,400 metres. The lowland Itebero sector contains some of the most intact lowland Congolian rainforest in eastern DRC. The highland forests are characterised by enormous Parinari trees draped in moss, tree ferns, and an extraordinary diversity of epiphytic orchids and bromeliads. The bamboo zone provides critical habitat for gorillas. Over 1,178 plant species have been recorded, with many Albertine Rift endemics.

Kahuzi-Biega sits on the western shoulder of the Albertine Rift, where the African continent is being pulled apart by tectonic forces. The high peaks of Kahuzi and Biega are ancient Precambrian basement rocks uplifted by rift flank uplift over the past 20–30 million years, contrasting with the younger volcanic terrain of the Virunga Range to the north. The lowland sector grades onto the Congo Craton's ancient peneplain surface. The rift valley context gives the park its extraordinary topographic relief, from lowland forest at 600 metres to sub-alpine moorland at over 3,000 metres, compressing multiple ecological zones into a compact geographic area.

The highland sector has a cool, mist-laden montane climate with year-round precipitation and temperatures averaging 12–18°C. The lowland sector is hot and humid with tropical rainfall totals exceeding 1,800 millimetres annually. The highland summit zone receives over 2,000 millimetres of rain distributed throughout the year with no true dry season. Morning fog is common in the montane forest. The cool, moist conditions are critical for the alpine plants and animals of the summit zone. The park's position on the Albertine Rift escarpment means that the eastern trade winds drop most of their moisture on the highland sector before descending as dry winds to the eastern rift floor.

The broader South Kivu region has been inhabited for millennia by Bantu-speaking agricultural communities and the Twa (Pygmy) hunter-gatherers who historically inhabited the forest. The Belgian colonial administration established the park by forcibly relocating forest-dwelling Twa and Shi communities from the protected area—a practice now recognised as ethically problematic and one that created lasting conflicts between the park and surrounding communities. Following Congolese independence and particularly during the Congo Wars (1996–2003), park infrastructure was destroyed, conservation staff fled, and illegal settlement and resource extraction devastated large areas.

Kahuzi-Biega was established as a national park in 1970, expanded in 1975 to include the lowland Itebero sector, and inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1980. It was listed as a World Heritage Site in Danger in 1997 due to armed conflict and subsequent conservation collapse. Under the management of ICCN with support from WWF, the Wildlife Conservation Society, and the Frankfurt Zoological Society, the park has undergone partial recovery since 2003. Gorilla tourism, halted during the conflict years, resumed in the highland sector and is now a critical conservation finance mechanism. The lowland sector remains largely inaccessible due to ongoing armed group presence.

Gorilla trekking in the highland sector is the park's principal activity, with habituated gorilla family groups visited daily by small guided groups. The park operates from the Tshivanga headquarters, approximately 50 kilometres from Bukavu. Trekking through the montane bamboo and Hagenia forest to find the gorilla groups takes 1–6 hours depending on the group's location. Chimpanzee tracking is available in some areas. Bird watching in the highland forest is exceptional for Albertine Rift endemic species. Mount Kahuzi can be summited on a day hike from the headquarters.

The park headquarters at Tshivanga is approximately 50 kilometres from Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu Province, on an unpaved road requiring a 4WD vehicle. Bukavu is connected by air to Kinshasa and Goma, and by ferry across Lake Kivu to Goma. Gorilla trekking permits must be obtained through ICCN in Bukavu or via international tour operators. The park has a basic visitor reception facility and guide services at Tshivanga. Accommodation is available in Bukavu (hotels) and in very basic guesthouses near the park. Security conditions require checking with local authorities before travel, as the region has historically experienced armed group activity.

Kahuzi-Biega faces existential conservation threats. The lowland sector has been massively invaded by artisanal miners and agricultural settlers, with estimates suggesting over 150,000 people living illegally within the park boundary. This invasion, driven by the collapse of state authority in eastern DRC and the minerals wealth of the region, has caused severe deforestation and bushmeat hunting. The gorilla population, estimated at approximately 3,800 individuals across its range in the mid-2010s, has declined dramatically due to hunting and habitat loss. Conservation organisations are working with ICCN to develop a community engagement strategy to address illegal settlement while maintaining protection of the highland sector's gorilla population.