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The gorilla

• Gorillas are ground-dwelling, predominantly herbivorous apes that

inhabit the forests of central Africa.

• The DNA of gorillas is highly similar to that of humans.

• They are the next closest living relatives to humans after the bonobo

and common chimpanzee.

• Their natural habitats cover tropical or sub tropical forests in

Africa.

• The closest relatives of gorillas are chimpanzees and humans.

• Wild males gorillas weigh 135 to 180 kg while adult females

usually weigh half as much as adult males at 68–113 kg.

Did you know???

• Mountain gorillas mostly eat foliage, such as leaves, stems, pith,

and shoots, while fruit makes up a very small part of their diets.

They primarily eat bamboo.

• Eastern lowland gorillas eat leaves , pith and fruits.

• Western lowland gorillas depend more on fruits than anything else.

• Gorillas rarely drink water "because they consume succulent

vegetation that is comprised of almost half water .

• Gorillas live in groups called troops that tend to be made of one

adult male ,multiple adult females and their offspring.

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• Female gorillas mature at 10 to 12 years; males at 11 to 13 years.

• Gorilla infants are vulnerable and dependant, thus mothers, their

primary caregivers, are important to their survival.

• A gorilla's lifespan is between 35 and 40 years, although zoo

gorillas may live for 50 years and more.

• Gorillas are considered highly intelligent. A few individuals in

captivity, such as koko, have been taught a subset of sign

language.

• Gorillas can laugh, grieve, have "rich emotional lives", develop

strong family bonds, make and use tools, and think about the past

and future.

Conservation status

• The eastern gorilla is listed as endangered on the IUCN Red list.

• The mountain gorilla and the western gorilla listed as critically

endangered.

• Threats to gorilla survival include habitat destruction and poaching for

the bushmeat trade.

• In 2004, a population of several hundred gorillas in the Odzala

National Park, Republic of Congo was essentially wiped out by the

Ebola virus.

• Conservation efforts include the Great Apes Survival Project and also

an international treaty, the Agreement On The Conservation Of

Gorillas And Their Habitat, concluded under UNEP-administered

Convention On Migratory Species. The Gorilla Agreement is the first

legally binding instrument exclusively targeting gorilla conservation.