Ndakasi, the viral mountain gorilla who became a selfie star in 2019, dies after prolonged illness

Ndakasi, a mountain gorilla who gained fame after she photobombed her forest ranger’s selfie in 2019, has passed away after a prolonged illness. The gorilla breathed her last in the arms of her lifelong friend and caretaker Andre Bauma. The Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where Ndakasi lived, shared the heartbreaking news on social media. The post stated that the orphaned gorilla’s health deteriorated rapidly “on the evening of 26 September, following a prolonged illness”. It also shared a touching photo of the gorilla with her caretaker. https://www.instagram.com/p/CUpgmdRN8Ys For more than a decade, Ndakasi had been under the care of the National Park’s Senkwekwe Center. She was only two months old when she was found by the Park’s rangers in 2007. The ape’s mother had been killed by an armed militia hours earlier, leaving the orphaned ape clinging to her mother’s body. After being rescued, she was introduced to Bauma, who became her friend and caretaker. She was deemed “too vulnerable to return to the wild”, according to the official website of the Virunga National Park, and lived a peaceful life with other orphaned mountain gorillas at the Centre. Ndakasi also became a star on social media, who featured in several films and shows. She won several fans in 2019, after an image of her posing with another orphaned mountain gorilla Ndeze, just as park ranger Mathieu Shamavu was taking a selfie, went viral on social media. The gorilla’s quirky personality won it several hearts online, leading it to become a social media star. Bauma said that it was a “privilege to support and care for such a loving creature,” keeping in mind the trauma Ndakasi had undergone in her childhood. He added that it was the gorilla’s “sweet nature and intelligence that helped me to understand the connection between humans and Great Apes" as well as why every effort should be made to protect the species. The Virunga National Park sustains about one-third of the world’s population of mountain gorillas and is the only facility in the world that cares for the endangered species in captivity. There are about 1,063 mountain gorillas present in the Park. Keywords: Ndakasi, Virunga National Park, mountain gorilla, Andre Bauma, Democratic Republic of Congo, trending stories, viral stories