Sunrise over Karisimbi volcano

View of Karisimbi volcano from Nyiragongo crater lip. Photo from Virunga national park, DRC. Photo taken January, 2015.

Baby mountain gorilla (Gorilla beringei beringei)

A curious baby keeping close to its mother. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Mountain gorilla (Gorilla beringei beringei)

Mountain gorilla photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Baby mountain gorilla with feeding mother (Gorilla beringei beringei)

The mother broke open an African Driver ant nest (Dorylus sp.). Despite thick hair and hardened pads on the hands, she was only able to endure a minute or two of biting before she fled the nest. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Huts on crater rim

Huts perched on the crater rim of Nyiragongo volcano. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

The Cauldron

Nyiragongo volcanic lake. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Nyiragongo Volcanic lake

Nyiragongo volcanic lake. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Volcanic lake eruption

Nyiragongo volcanic lake. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Leaf beetle larva (Chrysomelidae) with faecal deterrent

This beetle larva wears its excrement as a foul deterrent to would be predators. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Tortoise beetle larva (Cassidinae)

One can tell how old this larva is thanks to the past moults which remain attached and form a kind of distraction from the vulnerable body. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Silver tortoise beetle

The bright reflections might help to either disorient or else deter predators. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Bird dung-mimicking hoverfly larva (Syrphidae)

Appearing as a bird dropping is a form of camouflage adopted across orders, not only for defensive mimicry, but also hunters, like crab spiders. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Dance fly (Empididae)

Dance fly, or dagger fly so named because of their long proboscis are mainly predatory, though they all the same be seen gathering in flowers for some energy rich nectar. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Fly feeding on flowers

A fly using it's long proboscis to gather nectar from a flower. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Bird dung spider (Pasilobus sp.?)

The red form may help it to camouflage amongst expelled seeds from birds and monkeys. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Crab spider

Cryptic camouflage help this ambush predator to surprise passing prey. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Carpenter ant (Camponotus sp.)

Large soldier caste is at least 2x the size of the smaller workers. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Driver ant soldier (Dorylus sp.)

The fearsome driver ants of the old world are ubiquitous throughout most of sub-Saharan Africa. Their reputation as agents of terror is well-established in the African folklore and though the reality is perhaps a bit less colourful, they are indeed a formidable force. Their colonies can number in the millions, and their combined strength can even subdue larger prey like reptiles, amphibians and the odd mammal. The larger soldiers protect the colony rather than engaging in food retrieval. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

African driver ant workers (Dorylus sp.) with prey

When a scout stumbles across the path of potential prey , like this robberfly, it will release a recruitment pheromone to alert any neighbouring ants of its quarry. Within seconds the prey is swarmed. It is these workers which will dismember and carry the prey back to the bivouac. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Gateway to a new life

An unusual door-like arrangement of pentatomid eggs. One newly hatched bug is walking away, whilst the reddish colour in the top right egg indicates there is one left to hatch. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Leaf-mimicking flatid hopper (Flatidae)

Wing venation mimics those of leaves to help disguise this sap-sucking homopteran from predators. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Seed-mimicking grouse locust (Trypophyllum glabrifrons)

The only photo of a living specimen, as well as the only record from the DRC. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Praying mantis (Miomantis sp.?)

Unusual pink/red eyes in this specimen. Photographed in Virunga national park, DRC. Paul Bertner 2015.

Photo from Virunga national park, Democratic Republic of Congo. Copyright Paul Bertner 2014.

Photo from Virunga national park, Democratic Republic of Congo. Copyright Paul Bertner 2014.