Gorillas on the Line

The 411 on Gorillas

Gorillas are great apes. There are five great apes: gorillas, chimpanzees, orangutans, bonobos, and humans.

Gorillas are exceptional animals. They are highly intelligent, curious, gentle, and beautiful. They are only found on the continent of Africa.

There are four different kinds of gorillas:

Mountain

Western lowland (pictured to the left)

Grauer's gorillas/Eastern lowland

Cross River

Four kinds of Gorillas

Gorillas and their young

Gorilla mothers and their babies have strong bonds. Babies stay with their mothers until they are around four years old. Gorilla babies weigh approximately five pounds at birth. A crucial part of a baby gorilla's development is playing with other gorillas. Gorillas are very tolerant of the young.

Adult gorillas

Males weigh an average of 300-350 pounds. Females weight an average of 150-200 pounds. Gorillas are the largest primates. Gorillas (just like humans) have 32 teeth. While humans have unique fingerprints, gorillas have unique nose prints.

Gorillas and their diet

Gorillas spend most of their time eating and sleeping. They eat plants, stems, fruits, and bamboo. Bamboo is one of their favorite things to eat! They can eat up to 40 pounds in one day.

A troop of gorillas

They live in large groups of usually 10 gorillas. These large groups are called troops. The troop eats, sleeps, and plays together. One male gorilla is the leader of the troop. He not only protects the troop from other male gorillas and humans, but he decides where the troop will eat and sleep every day!

Why are gorillas worth saving?

We (humans) share 98% of our DNA with gorillas!
They are extremely important to the environment and the eco-system that they make up. They disperse seeds in the forest which helps plant trees.
They are a critical part of the food chain as they eat large amounts of vegetation.
They have their own communication system consisting of vocalizations.
- They make cough-grunt sounds. This sound is often used a warning, like if another gorilla gets too close to another gorilla's food.
- They "sing" while eating.
Gorillas are critically endangered. What does that mean for you? It means is that in the next twenty years, there may not be any gorillas left in the wild!

Why are gorillas endangered?

Their homes are being destroyed by mining for coltan, logging, and agriculture
They are hunted (for meat and/or illegal wildlife trade)
They can get sick with colds and viruses, like COVID)

"We humans have a complicated history regarding gorillas, including our fascination with them and our selfish need to want them close. Gorillas mirror us in uncountable ways: our interactions with family members, our investment of time in raising children, supplying guidance and comfort as they grow up and away from us. We mirror one another in our joy and laughter when playing, in our friendships and feuds, in our need for privacy and dignity. They delight us in their similarities while at the same time make us somewhat uncomfortable. We see our humanity in them, but when you are in essence the warden that commonality gives one pause."

Beth Armstrong, Voices from the Ape House

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