Baby pictures: new arrival for largest gorilla family in Congo

August 2010: The Congo's most imposing and aloof of silverbacks - Kabirizi - who lives in Virunga National Park is continuing his personal campaign to guarantee the survival of his species.

NEW ARRIVAL: Rubiga and her newborn take some time to relax and have a cuddle

In contrast with his long-time rival Humba, who seems to enjoy being photographed, Kabirizi is reticent about human attention and can be aggressive, making it much more difficult for the rangers to observe him and his family.

Watchful and protective
However, it was difficult to disguise the latest news - another addition to the family's baby boom.

FAMILY MAN: Kabrizi, with some of the members of his 36-strong family

Watchful and protective as always, Kabirizi wasn't enthusiastic about rangers' efforts to capture the mother and her baby on camera - although the results were outstanding, as the fantastic pictures here show.

The latest arrival, who rangers have yet to name, takes the number of individuals in the Kabrizi group to 36.

Fourth baby for Rubiga
The sheer size of the family adds to the difficulty of monitoring its members, but Virunga's team of specialist rangers eventually identified the mother as the genial 19-yaer-old Rubiga, and her baby appears in good health.

It is Rubiga's fourth baby.

ENTERTAINING AT HOME: The youngster gets into the swing of things – literally!