Western Lowland Gorilla
BINOMIAL NAME:
Gorilla Gorilla Gorilla
ANATOMICAL PROPORTIONS:
4.5-5.5 ft. tall/ 225-400 lbs.
POPULATION (APPROXIMATE):
100,000-200,000
CONSERVATION STATUS:
ENDANGERED / CRITICALLY ENDANGERED
DISTRIBUTION & HABITAT:
Along equatorial Africa, in lowland tropical and deciduous forests in the Central African Republic, Cameroon, Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Angola, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and Nigeria (in Africa)
DIET:
Depending on the season, mostly fruits and leaves (more than 200 types of plants); also stems, flowers, shoots, bulbs, and bark, and some insects (i.e. termites and ants)
SPECIES THREATS:
Although gorillas have traditionally lived in relatively uninhabited regions of Africa, human population growth and expansion, as well as an increased demand for logging have steadily marginalized remaining populations. Highly elusive and extremely shy (and non-violent), these apes have lost devastating tracks of former habitat, which has significantly limited their home ranges.
The fact that all sub-species of gorillas are protected under international law, does not limit illegal hunting and poaching. Bushmeat (the practice of killing exotic and often endangered animals, either eaten subsistently and/ or as a mark of status), trophy hunting (often seeking specific parts, like the hands, head, or feet), and the use of gorilla body-parts in traditional medicine, maintains a high price and steady demand for the animal. Local people, with sufficient access to gorillas, are also traditionally poor---to them, it is a matter of life and death to sell gorillas on the black market, for income.
Disease is another terrible threat to lowland gorillas, as they (as well as other great apes) are susceptible to many of the same diseases as humans. Some of the more infectious and deadly diseases---Ebola/ haemorrhagic fever, pneumonia, smallpox, tuberculosis, measles, rubella, and yellow fever---have seen outbreaks among gorilla communities. This was was the case in 2000, when Ebola HF claimed thousands of great apes, throughout Africa. Incidentally, many scientists believe that Ebola originally transmitted to humans, via the unsanitary, open-market conditions of the bushmeat industry.
UNIQUE FACTS:
Western lowland gorillas are certainly less endangered than other sub-species---they are more abundant than mountain and eastern lowland gorillas combined.
Unlike most primates, gorilla social groups center around the bonds between individual females and one, dominant male (called a silverback, due to his silvery grey back fur, which he develops at full maturity).
Like orangutans, gorilla reproduction is generally low---on average, a female does not bear offspring until she reaches age ten, and a male generally will not start reproducing until age fifteen (when he has a herem of his own). Overall, however, gorilla young are well-cared for and tolerated by the group, and males are especially gentle and accommodating throughout the rearing process.
DEVOTED ORGANIZATION:
Fernan-Vaz-Gabon Gorilla Project
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