Fascinating Facts About Mountain Gorillas in Africa

There are so many interesting facts about mountain gorillas in Africa.

Mountain gorillas inhabit the Virunga Conservation Area and Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.

Three parks share the Virunga area, and these are Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in Uganda, Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda, and Virunga National Park in Congo.

They all lie on the mountain slopes of the Virunga Massif Volcanoes.

These three countries charge different prices for trekking mountain gorillas, but the experience is worth it.

A gorilla permit in Uganda costs $700, $400 in Congo, and $1500 in Rwanda.

29 Mountain Gorilla Facts you should know

1. There are slightly more than 1000 mountain gorillas in the whole world.
2. Male mountain gorillas outweigh female mountain gorillas. The males can weigh up to 180 kilograms, and the females weigh only about 90 kilograms.
3. When mountain gorillas are born, the babies are very weak and weigh about 4 pounds. They are taken care of by their mothers and cling to their backs up to 3-4 years of age. They survive on their mother’s milk until they become mature.
4. Female mountain gorillas start getting pregnant at the age of 10 years, and they bear 2-6 offspring in a lifetime. Their gestation period is 8-9 months.
5. The dominating silverback in a group decides all the group’s daily activities and does everything possible to protect the group from danger, even at the expense of his life.
6. Mountain gorillas are shy and gentle. They can only charge when threatened and be extremely aggressive. When charging, they grunt, roar, beat their chests, tear vegetation, and engage in many things to scare off the threat. During such moments, female mountain gorillas also tend to protect their young ones even up to the point of death.
7. Mountain gorillas can only be found in the Virunga Conservation Area and in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda.
8. Mountain gorillas share over 98% DNA with humans, making them one of the human closest relatives next to Chimpanzees.
9. Mountain gorillas can live up to 54 years of age. The lifespan of mountain gorillas in the wild varies from those in captivity. They cannot survive when in captivity.
10. When a male mountain gorilla is grown, the hair on their back changes and becomes silver grey. This is why they are called Silverbacks.
11. Gorillas build nests where they sleep every evening. They only stay in the same nests during cold seasons or when it has rained. They have already adapted to this.
12. Mountain gorillas are the largest primates in the world.
13. Mountain gorillas are unique in that they can cry when hurt and can also laugh when tickled, just like humans. They are also emotional.
14. Mountain gorillas don’t drink water always because over 90% of what they consume contains water.
15. Mountain gorillas are very intelligent, and they can learn sign language and interact with humans.
16. Male mountain gorillas can consume over 49 pounds of vegetation in a day. The females eat slightly less than what the males consume.
17. Mountain gorillas use their four limbs for walking. Their front limbs are way longer and stronger than the limbs behind.
18. Mountain gorillas live in groups of 5 to 30 members under the leadership of a silverback. The group can live together for more than 20 years.
19. Mountain gorillas are primarily herbivores but can feed on meat sometimes to supplement their diet. This is, however, a rare scenario for them.
20. For reasons unknown, Mountain gorillas are said to be afraid of reptiles like chameleons and caterpillars. Baby mountain gorillas that are always fond of following anything crawling may end up giving their way to caterpillars and chameleons.
21. Mountain gorillas cannot live for long in captivity. If you saw gorillas in a zoo, then you probably saw lowland gorillas. Mountain gorillas can only survive in mountainous areas with high altitude.
22. Mountain gorillas don’t necessarily use vocal sounds for communicating like humans do but can use gestures to interact with others.
23. Mountain gorillas do not have a specific mating season. Babies can be produced anytime in the year.
24. Mountain gorillas are nomadic in nature. They don’t live in the same place every day. They always move all day in search of food and fruits.
25. Mountain gorillas rise up very early at 6 am to search for food and take naps at around midday before they start foraging for food again in the afternoon until 6 pm when they can build nests and sleep.
26. Mountain gorillas use tools like stems and branches to extract insects from the ground or hollow trees.
27. Mountain gorillas are highly threatened by humans through poaching and encroachment on their natural habitats.
28. The heaviest silverback recorded weighed 225 kilograms.

Trekking mountain gorillas

Gorilla trekking is an extremely exciting life experience.

Not so many get a chance to create its memories. Mountain gorilla trekking takes about 3-6 hours depending on the location of the gorilla family.

After finding gorillas, you will spend strictly 1 hour with them.

Make sure that you follow the gorilla trekking rules before and after meeting this ecstatic activity early morning in each of the respective gorilla parks.

Gorilla FAQs & Information

1. Why Can’t You Look or Make Eye Contact with a Gorilla?
2. Why Silverback Gorillas Fight
3. Importance of Mountain Gorillas
4. What to do when a gorilla charges on you
5. What is The Largest Species of Gorillas?
6. What is a Group of Gorillas Called?
7. What is the Mountain Gorillas Role in The Ecosystem?
8. The Mountain Gorilla Defense Mechanism
9. How to Provoke/Annoy a Gorilla
10. How Gorillas Greet Each Other
11. Do All Gorillas Become Silverbacks?
12. Do Gorillas like Humans
13. Do gorillas Eat of Kill Their Babies?
14. Do Gorillas Eat Humans?
15. Can you Tame a Gorilla
16. Can you Own a Gorilla?
17. Do Mountain Gorillas live in Families & Groups?
18. How to Protect & Save Mountain Gorillas
19. Why Gorillas Are So Strong
20. How Many Humans Does it Take to Beat a Gorilla?
21. How do you call a Baby Gorilla?
22. How Do Gorillas Sleep?
23. How Mountain Gorillas Communicate
24. The Gorilla Life Cycle
25. Do Gorillas drink water?
26. Are Gorillas friendly & gentle to humans?
27. Why do Apes, Gorillas beat their chest & sound hollow?
28. Gorilla Threats: Why Mountain Gorillas were endangered?
29. Why were Mountain Gorillas going extinct?
30. What is a Silverback Gorilla?
31. Gorilla Species: Different Kinds/Types of Gorilla & Breeds
32. Mountain Gorilla Diet
33. Mountain Gorilla Size, Average Height & Weight Measurements
34. Natural Mountain Gorilla Predators
35. Mountain Gorilla Population
36. Lifespan of Mountain Gorillas
37. Mountain Gorilla Natural Habitat
38. Mountain Gorilla Conservation Efforts
39. Mountain Gorilla Behavior
40. How to Survive a Gorilla Attack on Humans
41. Are Gorillas Dangerous to the People
42. Why are Gorillas Poached in Africa
43. How Gorillas Adapt to Rain-forest Environment
44. Traits, Qualities & Characteristics of Mountain Gorillas
45. How Strong is a Silverback Gorilla?
46. Best Place to See Mountain Gorillas in Africa
47. Uganda Gorilla Families
48. Rwanda Gorilla Families
49. Congo Gorilla Families