Democratic Republic of Congo retains certain spectacular aspect of history of ancient migrations which is unique to the origin of history of human civilization. Virunga National Park is situated in the centre of the Albertine Rift; scientists say that the emergence of the ‘Virunga massif in the southern part of the Park has been caused due to extension of earth’s crust’. Seven of eight volcanoes are locked in this Park alone; two active volcanoes of Africa- Nyamuragira and Nyiragongo – are responsible for two-fifths of the historic volcanic eruptions on the African continent.  ‘The northern sector of the Park includes about 20% of the massif of Monts Rwenzori – the largest glacial region of Africa and the only true alpine mountain chain of the continent. It borders the Rwenzori Mountains National Park of Uganda, inscribed as World Heritage, with which it shares the ‘Pic Marguerite’, third highest summit of Africa’.

‘The Park presents several other spectacular panoramas like the eroded valleys in the Sinda and Ishango regions. The Park also contains important concentrations of wildlife, notably elephants, buffalo and Thomas cobs, and the largest concentration of hippopotamuses in Africa, with 20,000 individuals living on the banks of Lake Edward and along the Rwindi, Rutshuru and Semliki Rivers……The Park contains two highly important ecological corridors as it connects the different respective sectors: the Muaro corridor connects the Mikeno sector to the Nyamulagira sector; the west side connects the north sector to the centre sector of the Virunga massif. …, Lake Edward forms an important aquatic corridor’.

More than 2,000 premier plant species have been identified, It also serves as refuge to 22 primate species of which three are the great ape – mountain gorilla (Gorilla beringei beringei), the eastern plain gorilla (Gorilla beringei graueri) and the eastern chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes schweinfurthi), with a third of the world population of mountain gorillas.

Among the ungulates, there are certain rare animals such as the okapi (Okapi johnstoni), endemic to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the red forest duiker (Cephalophus rubidus), endemic to Monts Rwenzori. The Park also comprises important tropical zones essential for the wintering of Palearctic avifauna.

Virunga—Baranga/Virtunga/Viranja

Albertine Rift—Mt Alborg

Nyamuragira—Nyamuru-gira/Nayajhada/Niyama-giri; gira or giri means

‘mountain’.

Nyiragongo—Nyira-gongo/Niraya(means ‘Hell’)/Nara means ‘the palace’ of

Ganga Dynasty; seems also as Niranjana

Monts Rwenzori—Jarapidhi/Avanti

Sinda—Sidnhu/Sindura

Ishango—Issana/Isigil

Rwindi River—River Ohandi

Rutshuru River—Rituparna

Semliki River—Salmali/Simili/Shamalaka

Muaro—Moeris/Maurya

Mikeno —Markana

Lake Edward—Lake Udra

Beringei beringei—Baranga/Barunei

Beringei graueri—Baranga and Gauri

Pan troglodytes schweinfurthi—Punt/ Trigarta country and the Skanda-vati

Cephalophus—Suphala

Rubidus—-Country of Rabi,