A mountain gorilla who became a worldwide sensation after posing in a selfie with a park ranger has died in the arms of her ‘lifelong friend’ who rescued her as an infant.

Orphaned Ndakasi was pictured taking her last breath while being held by her caretaker Andre Bauma, 49, in a harrowing scene at the Virunga National Park in eastern Congo.

Ndakasi, who died aged 14, was saved by Virunga rangers when she was just two-months-old after they found her clinging to the lifeless body of her mother who had been gunned down by armed militia hours earlier.

She was later transferred to the park’s Senkwekwe Center with a fellow orphaned gorilla Ndeze where the pair rose to internet fame when they appeared in a selfie with park ranger Mathieu Shamavu in 2019.

But after more than a decade of care at the Senkwekwe Centre, the ‘beloved’ gorilla died following a ‘prolonged illness in which her condition rapidly deteriorated’, a statement from the park said.

Orphaned Ndakasi was pictured taking her last breath while being held by her caretaker Andre Bauma, 49, in a harrowing scene at the Virunga National Park in eastern Congo

Ndakasi was later transferred to the park’s Senkwekwe Center with a fellow orphaned gorilla Ndeze where the pair rose to internet fame when they appeared in a selfie with park ranger Mathieu Shamavu in 2019

Ndakasi died on 26 September in the arms of Bauma, who, 14 years earlier, had held the gorilla as an infant closely to him, keeping her tiny body tightly against his chest for warmth and comfort, after she was rescued following her mother’s death.

In the photograph of Ndakasi’s final breath, the gorilla is seen leaning her head on Bauma’s chest while he holds her.

‘It was a privilege to support and care for such a loving creature, especially knowing the trauma Ndakasi suffered at a very young age,’ Bauma said. ‘One could say that she took after her mother, Nyiransekuye, whose name means “someone happy to welcome others”.’

He added: ‘It was Ndakasi’s sweet nature and intelligence that helped me to understand the connection between humans and Great Apes and why we should do everything in our power to protect them.

‘I am proud to have called Ndakasi my friend. I loved her like a child and her cheerful personality brought a smile to my face every time I interacted with her.

‘She will be missed by all of us at Virunga but we are forever grateful for the richness Ndakasi brought to our lives during her time at Senkwekwe.’

Ndakasi, who died aged 14, was saved by Virunga rangers when she was two-months-old after they found her clinging to the lifeless body of her mother who had been gunned down by armed militia hours earlier

Ndakasi survived the massacre of her family in 2007, but the trauma of losing them coupled with a long period of rehabilitation meant she was too vulnerable to return to the wild

Ndakasi became an internet sensation when she posed for a selfie with Ndeze and park ranger Shamavu.

Shamavu said he was checking his phone when he noticed the two female orphaned gorillas mimicking his movements, so he took a picture with them.

The gorillas look as if they’re posing for the camera and when Shamavu posted the picture on social media it quickly clocked up thousands of likes and comments.

Her life was also featured in the documentary Virunga, where Ndakasi can be seen in an elated mood as she is tickled by a caretaker.

Her life was also featured in the documentary Virunga, where Ndakasi can be seen in an elated mood as she is tickled by a caretaker

The massacres of gorillas led to the Congolese authorities to adopt institutional and security reform within the National Park, which strengthened the protection of the mountain gorillas.

Four mountain gorillas are seen playing with three park rangers at the Virunga National Park in eastern Congo

Ndakasi survived the massacre of her family in 2007, but the trauma of losing them coupled with a long period of rehabilitation meant she was too vulnerable to return to the wild.

The massacres led to the Congolese authorities to adopt institutional and security reform within the National Park, which strengthened the protection of the mountain gorillas.

Ndakasi was born at a time when the global population of mountain gorillas was fragile and critically endangered, the park said. But over the course of her life, the species has grown by 47 per cent – from 720 individuals in 2007 to an estimated 1,063 in 2021.

Virunga is billed as Africa’s most biodiverse national park, spanning tropical forests, snow-peaked mountains and active volcanoes.

It’s also one of the last bastions of wild mountain gorilla populations. Parks in the mountains of Congo, Rwanda and Uganda have the last remaining mountain gorillas in their natural habitat.

But it’s in eastern Congo, an area that has suffered from years of armed conflict.

Ndakasi was born at a time when the global population of mountain gorillas was fragile and critically endangered, the park said. But over the course of her life, the species has grown by 47 per cent

Virunga’s management has had to take extraordinary measures to keep its visitors safe from the on-and-off fighting in the region

Virunga’s management has had to take extraordinary measures to keep its visitors safe from the on-and-off fighting in the region – protecting them with a highly trained guard of elite rangers and sniffer dogs, and working closely with communities surrounding the park.

After a park ranger was killed by gunmen and three foreign tourists were briefly held captive, the park closed until it could secure the safety of visitors. It reopened in mid-February 2019.

But all this costs money, and the state park says it wouldn’t be able to survive without private donations from visitors.