M'kono

Western lowland gorillas face extinction in the wild, with fewer than 100,000 left across their African range. M’kono represents one success story in European breeding programs — born at Apenheul Primate Park in January 1999 to parents Irala and Bongo. His birth added crucial genetic diversity to the captive population of this critically endangered subspecies.

Raised by his mother through his early years, he spent over seven years developing within Apenheul’s troop structure. Those formative years shaped his understanding of gorilla social dynamics before his transfer to Safaripark Beekse Bergen in September 2006.

Now in his mid-twenties, he has lived at Beekse Bergen for nearly two decades. His subspecies — Gorilla gorilla gorilla — continues to decline in Central and West African forests due to habitat loss, disease, and hunting pressure. Each captive-born gorilla like M’kono helps maintain genetic reserves for potential future conservation efforts.