( CNN ) -- Undercover officers rescued a baby gorilla from suspected animal traffickers in the Democratic Republic of Congo , a national park in the country announced Tuesday . This baby gorilla was rescued from a suspected trafficker in the Democratic Republic of Congo . The gorilla , thought to be about two years old , was hidden at the bottom of a bag and covered with clothes when Congolese Wildlife Authority officers arrested the suspected trafficker on Sunday , Virunga National Park said . The gorilla , a female , was overheated and dehydrated after six hours in transit . She also had a puncture wound on her right leg , among other injuries , and is malnourished , but is responding to treatment , the park said in a statement . It is not clear if the young gorilla 's mother is alive or dead , park spokeswoman Samantha Newport said . `` You can assume that a gorilla family was attacked in order for the traffickers to obtain a baby -- but it is impossible to know if a whole family was wiped out , just a few individuals , or none at all , '' she said . `` In most cases gorillas have to die to get a baby -- but we can not know specifically for this case . '' The animal is now being looked after by specially trained carers , Newport said . `` This is of course not an ideal replacement for a mother -- but the best option we have , '' she told CNN via e-mail . Carers often have some veterinary training , but are not fully fledged vets , she added . But gorillas do not do well in situations like this , she warned . `` Gorillas , it is worth noting , are notoriously difficult to keep alive , '' she said . `` Chimps are fighters , as are bonobos . But gorillas -- when the going gets tough -- tend to just shut down . So it really is a critical time right now to ensure she gets the veterinary attention and human warmth that she needs to get through this . '' The suspect was getting off a plane from the interior of the country , near the gorillas ' habitat , the park said . One person has been charged under the country 's law forbidding the destruction of flora and fauna , Newport told CNN . The park did not name the suspect . Gorillas can fetch up to $ 20,000 on the black market , the head of Virunga National Park said . `` Investigations have yet to reveal where these animals are being sent and who is buying them , but on the ground sources tell us that a baby gorilla can fetch up to $ 20,000 , '' said Emmanuel de Merode , the director . `` We must remember that for each trafficked baby gorilla , several gorillas have probably been killed in the wild . '' He led the three-month undercover operation that netted the suspect and the gorilla , the park said . The gorilla is a lowland eastern gorilla ( Gorilla beringei graueri ) , also known as the Grauer 's Gorilla , a subspecies of Eastern Gorilla only found in the forests of eastern Democratic Republic of Congo , according to the park . Virunga National Park calls itself the oldest national park in Africa , established in 1925 . It lies in a region that has been badly affected by the long-running war in the Democratic Republic of Congo . The gorilla section is in a strategically important area near the borders of Rwanda and Uganda . A ranger was killed earlier this year , and rangers lost control of a large part of the park to rebels for over a year . But a census earlier this year suggests mountain gorillas are surviving despite poaching and war . Officials have long said that the 250-square kilometer gorilla reserve in the southern part of Virunga National Park is where around 200 of the world 's 700 mountain gorillas live .
Undercover officers rescue a baby gorilla from suspected animal traffickers . Congolese Wildlife Authority officers find gorilla hidden in bag . Female gorilla was overheated and dehydrated after six hours in transit .