These infants ride on their mothers’ backs from the age of four months through the first two or three years of their lives. Unlike their powerful parents, newborns are tiny-weighing about four pounds-and are capable of doing no more than clinging to their mothers' fur. Reproductionįemale gorillas give birth to one infant after a pregnancy of nearly nine months. In captivity, gorillas have displayed significant intelligence and have even learned simple human sign language. Though they’re normally quiet animals, western lowland gorillas have an extensive array of vocalizations-at least 22 different hoots, barks, and screams, each with its own meaning. Despite these displays and the animals’ obvious physical power, gorillas are generally calm and nonaggressive unless they are disturbed. When challenged by another male, a troop leader will demonstrate his strength by standing upright, throwing things, making aggressive charges, and pounding his huge chest while barking out powerful hoots or unleashing a roar. Though gorillas can stand upright, they prefer traveling on all fours, pushing themselves forward with their knuckles and soles of their feet. The leader organizes troop activities, such as eating, nesting in leaves, and moving about the group's home range. Troops also include several other young males, some females, and their offspring. Troops are led by one dominant, older adult male, often called a silverback because of the swath of silver hair that adorns his otherwise dark fur. Gorillas can climb trees, but they’re usually found on the ground in communities-known as troops-of up to 30 individuals.
They eat roots, shoots, fruit, wild celery, and tree bark and pulp. These gorillas live in thick tropical rainforests, where they find plenty of food for their vegetarian diet. Habitat and dietĪs the most widespread gorilla subspecies, the western lowland gorilla can be found across more than 270,000 square miles of central and West Africa-including Cameroon, Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Angola, and the Republic of the Congo. Like their cousins, western lowland gorillas are endangered and face the loss of their habitat. Infants have a tuft of white hair on their backsides, and older gorillas may get streaks of silver in their hair. Western lowland gorillas have shorter black-brown hair, longer arms, and a more prominent ridge along their brow. Western lowland gorillas are the smallest of the four gorilla subspecies, which also include the Cross River gorillas, Grauer’s gorillas, and mountain gorillas. Current Population Trend: Decreasing What is the western lowland gorilla?
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