Follow Us

Rwanda Named 24 Adorable Gorillas For Conservation Efforts

The Rwanda government has held the mountain gorilla naming ceremony since 2005 to highlight conservation efforts for the endangered species.

Rwanda Named 24 Adorable Gorillas For Conservation Efforts

Getty Images / Brent Stirton

By Samantha Crook

Posted: 10:46 p.m. EDT Sep 5, 2015

The Rwandan government named 24 baby gorillas Saturday.

The naming ceremony, Kwita Izina, happens every year in Rwanda's Volcanoes National Park.

The event highlights Rwanda's role in the conservation of critically endangered mountain gorillas, tourism and economic development in the country. (Video via Jason Tester Guerilla Fuentes / CC BY ND 2.0)

The World Wildlife Fund estimates there are nearly 900 mountain gorillas left in the world, but the species has seen a slow population increase in recent years.

Rwanda plans to conduct a Mountain Gorilla census this year to determine the current size of the mountain gorilla population.

This video includes images from Kwita Izina (Rwanda's Gorilla Naming Ceremony) / CC BY ND 2.0 and video from Jason Tester Guerilla Fuentes / CC BY ND 2.0.

Top Stories

File photo of a postal worker loading a delivery vehicle.

New bill in congress would help protect US postal workers

The U.S. Postal Service has its own uniformed law enforcement agency, but officers have been working under limited authority.

A hiring sign is displayed at a restaurant in Prospect Heights, Ill.

Unemployment drops as US economy adds 199,000 jobs in November

The U.S. workforce has continued steady growth in the face of rising interest rates, which often stifles the job market.

Recalled magnetic balls

Toy magnetic balls recalled for not meeting safety standards

Similar magnetic balls were responsible for 2,400 hospitalizations and seven deaths over a five-year period.