Anthrax outbreak kills hippos in DR Congo’s Virunga National Park

Drought and conflict compound the threat to wildlife in eastern DR Congo.

A dead hippo in the Semuliki River [Courtesy of Virunga National Park]

Vitshumbi, DR Congo – While the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) continues to grapple with the deadliest Ebola outbreak in its history, another disease is taking a heavy toll on wildlife in Virunga National Park in the country’s east.

Over the past four weeks, hippopotamus carcasses have been discovered in the Semuliki River, west of Africa’s oldest national park, raising concern among communities living along its banks.

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“It was in mid-September that we began to notice the mass deaths of hippos in the Semuliki River. We have started to fear this situation, which is unfolding whilst we are in the midst of the Ebola outbreak,” Michael Kambale, a resident of the Vitshumbi enclave, about 100 kilometres (62 miles) north of Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, told Al Jazeera.

Following laboratory tests, Virunga National Park confirmed that anthrax, caused by the bacterium Bacillus anthracis, was responsible for the wildlife deaths.

According to park officials, 28 hippos died over approximately one month.

“This disease can be transmitted to humans through contact with a dead or sick animal or by consuming its meat,” Virunga National Park said in a press release sent to Al Jazeera.

Anthrax threatens wildlife and local communities

Joel Mbusa Mapoli, an expert in ecology and veterinary medicine, said the deaths represented a significant loss for Virunga National Park and called for urgent action to contain the outbreak.

He explained that hippos act as ecosystem engineers, altering nutrient flows and the ecological conditions of their habitats.

Virunga National Park said it was focusing on surveillance, the safe management of carcasses and reducing risks to wildlife and local communities.

View of the southern part of Virunga National Park [Prosper Heri Ngorora/Al Jazeera]

“Teams are monitoring the affected area, recording new cases of mortality and coordinating the safe handling and disposal of carcasses,” the park said.

“People living in the affected area and its surroundings are being informed about the outbreak; they are advised not to touch, skin or consume animals found dead, and to report any carcasses or suspected cases to the relevant authorities,” the park added.

Founded in 1925, Virunga is Africa’s oldest national park and is renowned for its biodiversity.

Conflict puts conservation at risk

Olivier Ndoole Bahemuke, a Congolese environmental activist and head of Alerte Congolaise pour l’environnement et les droits de l’homme, a nonprofit organisation operating in the DRC, said the armed conflict that has persisted in the country for nearly three decades had fuelled poaching and deforestation.

The park says it has lost control of a significant part of its territory over the past four years because of the ongoing conflict between the Congolese army and M23 fighters.

The M23 armed group says it is helping protect the area from poachers and other potential human threats.

Drought and recurring anthrax outbreaks

Park officials said anthrax outbreaks had previously been observed among hippos and other wild animals in the ecosystem during periods of drought.

According to Mapoli, several factors contribute to recurring anthrax outbreaks in Virunga National Park. These include the persistence of the bacterium in the environment, deteriorating ecological and climatic conditions, the concentration of animals around aquatic habitats and difficulties in monitoring wildlife health.

“When vegetation becomes scarce, herbivores may graze closer to the ground and congregate around the few remaining grazing areas and water points, thereby increasing their exposure to contaminated soil,” Virunga National Park said in a statement sent to Al Jazeera, adding that the situation was being monitored “closely”.

The park’s February 2026 census estimated the hippo population at more than 2,700, distributed across 171 groups.

In 2025, an anthrax outbreak killed 65 hippos in Virunga National Park, according to the park’s February 2026 population update. Park staff mobilised excavators to retrieve the carcasses from the water.

According to park officials, anthrax can survive for decades in the soil in the form of spores.

Protecting hippos means protecting the ecosystem

Mapoli said the response to anthrax should combine conservation measures with public health interventions, in line with the One Health principle, an approach that recognises the links between human, animal and environmental health.

He called for stronger epidemiological surveillance, better protection for local communities, proper management of animal carcasses and greater collaboration among state, non-state and para-state bodies.

“The hippopotamus is one of the flagship species of the Virunga ecosystems. Its disappearance could lead to a major disruption of aquatic ecosystems, as these animals play a role in the exchange of matter between terrestrial and aquatic environments,” he told Al Jazeera.

干旱和冲突加剧了刚果民主共和国东部野生动物面临的威胁。

塞姆利基河中的一头死河马 [图片由维龙加国家公园提供]

刚果民主共和国维特舒姆比——刚果民主共和国（刚果（金））仍在努力应对该国历史上最致命的埃博拉疫情，与此同时，另一种疾病正在该国东部的维龙加国家公园对野生动物造成严重打击。

过去四周，在非洲最古老的国家公园以西的塞姆利基河中发现了河马尸体，这引起了沿岸居民的担忧。

列表 1/3：随着前总统约瑟夫·卡比拉加入叛乱，刚果民主共和国的恐惧情绪日益加剧

列表 2/3：汉密尔顿呼吁巴勒斯坦和刚果民主共和国获得自由，卢旺达成为F1焦点

刚果民主共和国埃博拉死亡人数超过5000人（列表3/3）

“9月中旬，我们开始注意到塞姆利基河中河马大量死亡。我们开始担心这种情况，而此时我们正处于埃博拉疫情爆发之中，”北基伍省首府戈马以北约100公里（62英里）的维特舒姆比飞地居民迈克尔·坎巴莱告诉半岛电视台。

经过实验室检测，维龙加国家公园证实，由炭疽杆菌引起的炭疽病是造成野生动物死亡的原因。

据公园管理人员称，大约一个月内，有 28 头河马死亡。

“这种疾病可以通过接触死亡或患病的动物，或者食用其肉而传染给人类，”维龙加国家公园在一份发给半岛电视台的新闻稿中表示。

炭疽病威胁野生动物和当地社区

生态学和兽医学专家乔尔·姆布萨·马波利表示，这些动物的死亡对维龙加国家公园来说是一次重大损失，并呼吁采取紧急行动控制疫情。

他解释说，河马扮演着生态系统工程师的角色，改变着养分流动和栖息地的生态条件。

维龙加国家公园表示，他们正致力于监测、安全管理动物尸体以及降低对野生动物和当地社区的风险。

维龙加国家公园南部景观 [Prosper Heri Ngorora/半岛电视台]

公园方面表示：“各小组正在监测受影响地区，记录新增死亡病例，并协调安全处理和处置动物尸体。”

公园方面补充说：“我们正在向受影响地区及其周边地区的居民通报疫情情况；建议他们不要触摸、剥皮或食用发现的死亡动物，并将任何动物尸体或疑似病例报告给有关部门。”

维龙加国家公园成立于 1925 年，是非洲最古老的国家公园，以其生物多样性而闻名。

冲突危及自然保护

刚果环境活动家、非营利组织“刚果环境与人权警报”（Alerte Congolaise pour l'environnement et les droits de l'homme）负责人奥利维尔·恩杜勒·巴赫穆克表示，该国持续近三十年的武装冲突助长了偷猎和森林砍伐。

该公园表示，由于刚果军队和M23武装分子之间持续不断的冲突，过去四年里，它失去了对其大部分领土的控制权。

M23武装组织称，他们正在帮助保护该地区免受偷猎者和其他潜在的人为威胁。

干旱和反复爆发的炭疽疫情

公园官员表示，此前在干旱时期，该生态系统中的河马和其他野生动物中曾观察到炭疽病爆发。

据马波利称，导致维龙加国家公园炭疽病反复爆发的因素有很多，包括炭疽杆菌在环境中的持续存在、生态和气候条件的恶化、动物在水生栖息地周围的聚集以及野生动物健康监测的困难。

维龙加国家公园在一份发给半岛电视台的声明中表示：“当植被变得稀少时，食草动物可能会更贴近地面觅食，并聚集在仅存的几个牧场和水源地周围，从而增加它们接触受污染土壤的机会。”声明还补充说，他们正在“密切”监测这一情况。

公园在 2026 年 2 月进行的人口普查估计，河马数量超过 2700 只，分布在 171 个群体中。

根据维龙加国家公园2026年2月发布的种群数量更新报告，2025年，该公园爆发炭疽疫情，导致65头河马死亡。公园工作人员调集挖掘机从水中打捞出河马尸体。

据公园管理人员称，炭疽菌可以以孢子的形式在土壤中存活数十年。

保护河马就是保护生态系统

马波利表示，应对炭疽病应将保护措施与公共卫生干预措施相结合，这符合“同一健康”原则，该原则承认人类、动物和环境健康之间的联系。

他呼吁加强流行病学监测，更好地保护当地社区，妥善管理动物尸体，并加强国家、非国家和准国家机构之间的合作。

“河马是维龙加生态系统的旗舰物种之一。它们的消失可能会对水生生态系统造成重大破坏，因为这些动物在陆地和水生环境之间的物质交换中发挥着重要作用，”他告诉半岛电视台。