Scientific classification: Gorillas belong to the Primate order. Some scientists classify gorillas in the family Pongidae and other scientists place gorillas in the family Hominidae. The western gorilla is classified as Gorilla gorilla and the eastern gorilla as Gorilla beringei.
Introduction
The Gorilla is the largest of the great apes and one of the closest living relatives of the human species. Like chimpanzees, orangutans, and other great apes, gorillas are members of the primate order. Monkeys and humans also belong to this order. Again, where do gorillas live Until recently, accounts of the gorilla have portrayed a ferocious, powerful beast prone to attacking people. Such descriptions proliferated in various media, a prime example being the American motion-picture classic King Kong (1933). Only after 1960 did evidence emerge, from the field studies of American zoologists George B. Schaller and Dian Fossey, that the gorilla is a relatively gentle vegetarian who attacks only if directly threatened.
Types of Gorilla
For many years gorillas were classified as a single species within the genus Gorilla. However, recent genetic evidence suggests that this classification should be modified to distinguish two separate species: the western and eastern gorillas, each represented by several subspecies. Western gorillas live in the western portion of central Africa (Gabon, Republic of the Congo, Cameroon, Central African Republic, and Mbini). where do gorillas live Eastern gorillas live in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC, formerly Zaire), Rwanda, and Uganda. Although nearly all gorillas found in zoos are western gorillas rather than eastern gorillas, a subspecies of the eastern gorilla commonly known as the mountain gorilla is most familiar due to extensive research and popular documentary and motion-picture portrayals of its life in the wild.
Physical description
Gorillas are born small, each weighing about 2 kg (4.5 lb). Yet adult females grow to an average weight of 90 kg (200 lb) and a height of 1.5 m (5 ft), and adult males may reach a weight of 140 to 180 kg (310 to 400 lb) and a height of 1.8 m (5.9 ft). Gorilla coats are generally black, with the lower back region turning to gray in adult males. Some gorilla populations have reddish-brown patches on the forehead, and others show white patches around the ears. where do gorillas live The adult gorilla has a large head, a broad, flattened nose with flared nostrils, long arms with massive forearms, short and stocky legs, and a protruding abdomen. Its eyes, ears, and genitals are small relative to overall body size.
Conservation
Gorillas are legally protected in all countries in which they live. Despite this, gorillas are threatened with extinction as a result of the clearing and destruction of the tropical forests on which they depend, and the illegal hunting of gorillas for meat, trophies, or subsequent sale of live young. where do gorillas live, Mountain gorillas living on the borders of the DRC, Rwanda, and Uganda, along with a small population of gorillas on the Nigeria and Cameroon border, are most at risk. Each of these populations numbers only in the hundreds.