While Gorillas can be seen in several zoos all over the world, meeting them in their natural forest habitat is a charming wild experience. Getting up-close to these close relatives to the human race in a natural way and watch all the little and big similarities we have in common is undoubtedly a charming experience words can’t explain. There are several facts about gorillas that you must understand.
HERE ARE SOME OF THE FACTS ABOUT GORILLAS
Weight of a gorilla
The largest gorillas (Eastern lowland) can weight up to 250 Kg (550 pounds). While the average human weight ranges from 65 Kgs to 70 Kgs, the Eastern lowland gorillas weigh more than 3 people.
Gorilla families
Gorilla families are also known as troops. Gorillas usually stay in small groups of around 10 individuals, with one silverback leading the group. Gorilla groups can be smaller or larger than this average number, but they cannot have more than one silverback dominating the entire group.
Communication
Gorillas can learn a language and use uncomplicated tools and even make some tools. With enough guided social interaction with people, gorillas (both in the wild and in zoos) have shown improved language skills in both sign language and spoken. Gorillas can actually learn up to 2000 words.
Leadership
Silverbacks are in charge of safeguarding the troop’s safety. Every troop is led by a mature silverback which is in charge of leading the whole troop to different places for food. More significantly, the silverback’s role is to protect the members of his troop even if he has to die for them.
Lifespan
Gorillas live up to 35–40 years in the wild and averagely 50 years in captivity (zoo). Humans live much longer but gorillas are still able to live longer than us if it wasn’t for the modern medicine and mechanization of work.
Long arms
Their arms are quite longer and stronger than their legs. This is why they typically walk on all fours. They walk on the knuckles of their hands which is correctly known as knuckle-walking. Gorillas can also walk with only their legs (as humans do) but knuckle-walking gives them more comfort and balance to climb trees and steep hills.
Strength
An average gorilla is roughly 6 times stronger than a regular human. Well, they work out every day and most human beings don’t.
Age/Maturity
A mature male gorilla’s hair turns grey starting with the back- hence the name silverback. After a young male gorilla matures, the hair on its back starts to turn grey/silver. This is around the age of 10 – 12 years. Male gorillas are cast out of the family by the dominant males once they are old enough to mate (10 years). This is because the silverback has exclusive rights to mate all the female gorillas. The male then goes off to find its own females to start a family.
Gestation
Gorillas take 8.5 months to have babies. That is two weeks less than the gestation period of human beings. Nobody understands why that gap of 2 weeks exists.
Habitat
Gorillas live in a range of environments from swamps to forests. There are lowland gorillas which live in bamboo forests, swamps and lowland forests. The mountain gorillas which live in forests in the Virunga mountains.
What do they eat?
Gorillas are typically herbivores and eat plants. They feed on leaves, fruit, stems pith and bamboo. Sometimes they eat insects, especially ants. A full grown adult male eating around 50 pounds of food in a day.
Offspring
Like human beings, female gorillas get pregnant for nine (8.5months) and generally give birth to only one infant at a time. Newborn gorillas weigh about 4 lbs. (1.8 kgs). Young gorillas ride on their mothers’ backs as a form of transportation from the time they’re about 4 months to 2 or 3 years.
CONCLUSION
The above facts are a true representation of the nature of these endangered apes which can only be explored during gorilla tracking. A gorilla trip to their natural habitat will open your mind to these obvious facts about the Gorillas.