Mountain gorillas are an endangered species of great apes that inhabit Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda, and Mgahinga and Bwindi National Park in Uganda.
Mountain gorillas are a subspecies of Eastern gorillas. Gorillas are divided into four subspecies: mountain gorillas, eastern lowland gorillas, western lowland gorillas, and cross river gorillas.
These entire subspecies have slight differences in body shape and their habitat.
What do Mountain Gorillas eat?
Mountain gorillas mainly eat vegetables, sticking to stems, leaves, bamboo shoots, fruits, pith, moths, roots, and grubs.
They sometimes supplement their diet with termites, ants, and insects.
Mountain gorillas can break termite nests to eat larvae.
Fruits make up about 25% of a gorilla’s diet, and they can cover a range of 3-6 square kilometers each day in search of food.
Gorillas consume more fibrous foods than other primates and often rely on diet availability rather than selection.
Gorillas have a preference for high-sugar and low-fiber foods that contain tannin ratios, as well as those with high protein and sugar content.
Occasionally, gorillas also eat ash and soil, which helps regulate their digestive system.
An adult male mountain gorilla can consume up to 30 kilograms of vegetation in a day, while an adult female gorilla can consume about 18 kilograms of vegetation daily.
Mountain gorillas eat approximately 250 species of plants.
Mountain gorillas rarely drink water because most of the diet they consume contains a high percentage of water.
They have a set of 32 teeth, just like humans, which helps them chew the vegetation they consume.
However, adult males develop canines as they mature, which they use for fighting.
Book gorilla trekking safaris in Africa to visit gorillas in their natural habitat.