He was famously attentive to his offspring, including a rare set of twins, Inganda and Inguka.
Habituation—the process of getting wild gorillas accustomed to human presence—was a slow, delicate dance led by the indigenous people. Makumba’s unusually calm and gentle nature allowed humans to observe him from just a few meters away, transforming him into a "tourist attraction" that funded the protection of his entire ecosystem. A Gentle Leader
Born around 1979 in the dense jungles of the , Makumba spent his early years as a "blackback" in the shadow of older leaders. In 2000, as a young male in his prime, he set out to establish his own legacy. By 2004, his family group was chosen for a pioneering habituation project in the Dzanga-Sangha Protected Areas .
In Zambian folklore, Makumba is a "Tribal God" of the Baushi people, a meteorite-like object said to possess divine powers.
Over 10,000 visitors, including filmmakers and photographers, met him in his natural habitat, bringing global awareness to the plight of western lowland gorillas. The Final Battle