Unlike chimpanzees, gorillas don’t use tools to get those termites instead, they just smash the termite mound to get the tasty insects living inside! At the San Diego Zoo and San Diego Zoo Safari Park, our gorillas are fed a variety of produce and browse material six times a day, as well as special treats like Cheerios and Wheat Chex cereals. Gorilla food includes leaves, stems, fruits, seeds, roots, ants, and termites. The big toe of a gorilla’s foot is opposable, like our thumb, to help it grab food or climb trees. Strong jaws help the gorilla chew tough stems. A gorilla’s large stomach can hold the bulky food it eats. Strong jaws and impressive teeth help the gorilla chew tough stems.Ĭan you imagine waking up each morning surrounded by food? Almost everything a gorilla eats is plant material, so life in the forest is like living in a huge restaurant! And gorillas love to eat-it’s their favorite activity! An adult male eats up to 40 pounds (18 kilograms) of food each day. The gorilla’s fibrous scat acts as rich fertilizer for the forest, and seedlings sprout from it rapidly, making gorillas important forest regenerators.Īn adult male eats up to 40 pounds (18 kilograms) of food each day. Like all great apes (except humans), gorillas require rainforests to make their living, and the forest depends upon them, too. Their arms are much longer than their legs, and gorillas can use the backs of their fingers like extra feet when they walk. Although they are able to stand upright, gorillas prefer to walk using their hands as well as their legs. Many people like to compare gorillas with humans, but there are several differences. They are the largest of all primates-the group of animals that includes monkeys, lemurs, orangutans, chimpanzees, and humans.
But the truth is, they’re peaceful, family oriented, plant-eating primates that live in complex social groups. They seem to be forever typecast as the heavy. Unlike their eastern cousins, western gorillas are hunted for bushmeat, and in recent years the spread of the Ebola virus has devastated the gorilla population.Gentle giants. Ever since King Kong first gave Fay Wray that unexpected lift to the top of the Empire State Building in 1933, Hollywood has gone ape depicting the gorilla as perfect monster material. But as the logging industry engulfs the forest, bringing roads, hunters and disease, the western lowland gorillas’ long-term future has been thrown into uncertainty. Until recently, conservationists were less concerned about the long-term future of the western lowland gorilla as their vast forest home created a natural boundary between them and their human neighbours. Habitat loss, hunting for bushmeat, disease (especially the Ebola virus), logging, mining Widespread throughout west and central Africa They also eat leaves, shoots, bark, ants and other insects. Like all gorillas, they are largely herbivorous, but western gorillas are particularly fond of fruit, which makes up most of their diet when available. Western lowland gorillas live in family groups led by a dominant silverback, but unlike eastern gorillas, the group will often split up during the day, coming back together at night to nest.
They often have much redder or greyer fur, adult males have striking chestnut fur on their head and neck, and the characteristic fur on their back extends further down their thighs giving them a more full-bodied silver look. Western lowland gorillas are smaller than their eastern cousins – although adult males can still weigh up to 180kg (28st 4lb). Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Cameroon, Angola, Equatorial Guinea, Central African Republic
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