Mountain gorillas are an endangered subspecies of eastern gorillas inhabiting the subtropical and tropical rain-forests of the Virunga volcanoes and Bwindi Impenetrable National Park – The best place for gorilla trekking in Uganda.
There are only about 1000 individuals left in the world. Mountain gorillas live in social structures of 5-30 individuals dominated by a silverback that organizes all the group’s daily activities and defends the group from attacks by humans and other gorillas.
Mountain gorillas are the largest living primates and share 98% of their DNA with humans.
When baby gorillas are born, they survive on their mothers’ breast milk until they reach the age of about 4 years, at which point they start feeding on their mothers’ diet and mainly cling to their mothers’ backs.
Mountain gorilla lifespan
Female mountain gorillas reach sexual maturity at around 8-10 years, while male mountain gorillas reach maturity at the age of 15-20 years.
A female gorilla can produce her own baby by the age of 10. The gestation period for a female gorilla is 8-9 months, similar to humans, though the fertility rate is low, with only 1-2 fertile days in a month.
When baby mountain gorillas are born, they are vulnerable, much like human babies, weighing only about 4 pounds.
The mother will carry the baby mountain gorilla for up to 4 months before they start clinging to their mother’s back. During this time, the mother will breastfeed the baby until the age of 3-4 years.
At the age of 4 years, a baby mountain gorilla becomes an independent juvenile, though not very mature.
The dominating male who controls all the group’s activities is known as a silverback because of the grey patch of hair they develop on their backs as they mature.
Silverbacks have access to all the females in the group and do not allow young or mature males to take over.
When males in the group become mature, they may challenge the dominating silverback to take over the family or leave the group to form their own family.
During mating, it is the female mountain gorillas who follow the male mountain gorillas when they are ready.
When a female produces a baby, they will not mate again until about 4 years later.
Gorillas do not have a specific mating season, so they can mate at any time of the year.
Mountain gorillas cannot survive for long in zoos; they have a lifespan of about 35-40 years.
As they grow old, gorillas may suffer from arthritis, which can damage their bones, hands, and feet.
The heaviest gorilla ever recorded weighed 267 kilograms, and the tallest was 1.95 meters tall.
