Gorillas do not eat their babies; however, they occasionally practice infanticide.
This typically occurs when a female with a young offspring moves to another group.
In such cases, the dominating silverback of the group may kill the young baby gorilla. Alternatively, if another silverback comes to dominate the group, they may also kill the young baby gorillas.
This behavior is more common with male baby gorillas, as the silverbacks may feel insecure and fear that the young males could grow up and challenge their dominance.
Gorillas have a strong bond with their young ones. Mothers take great care of and nurture their babies with breast milk. The baby gorilla often clings to its mother’s back or chest and sleeps in the mother’s nest until the age of 3-4 years.
At that point, they may start sleeping in their own nest but remain close to their mother’s nest.
Silverbacks also play a crucial role in taking care of their groups. They protect the group from any potential harm, and if a female gorilla dies, the silverback will step in to care for the baby gorilla, even allowing it to share their nest.
Baby gorillas have a strong affinity for the group leader, often including the silverback in their games.
Silverbacks are known to protect their young ones, and they may remove snares set by poachers using their canine teeth.
Gorillas primarily feed on plant material, with approximately 86% of their diet composed of leaves, stems, pith, bark, bamboo shoots, roots, fruits, and more.
Gorillas consume about 142 species of plants found in their natural habitat. They rarely drink water because a significant portion of their diet contains moisture.
Occasionally, gorillas supplement their diet with insects, termites, and ants.
A male silverback can consume up to approximately 30 kilograms of food in a day, while a female can eat up to 20 kilograms of food daily. In conclusion, gorillas do not eat their babies.
You may chance and see a baby gorilla on your gorilla trekking safaris in Uganda, Rwanda or Congo.
Gorilla FAQs & Information
- Why Can’t You Look or Make Eye Contact with a Gorilla?
- Why Silverback Gorillas Fight
- Importance of Mountain Gorillas
- What to do when a gorilla charges on you
- What is The Largest Species of Gorillas?
- What is a Group of Gorillas Called?
- What is the Mountain Gorillas Role in The Ecosystem?
- The Mountain Gorilla Defense Mechanism
- How to Provoke/Annoy a Gorilla
- How Gorillas Greet Each Other
- Do All Gorillas Become Silverbacks?
- Do Gorillas like Humans
- Do Gorillas Eat Humans?
- Can you Tame a Gorilla
- Can you Own a Gorilla?
- Do Mountain Gorillas live in Families & Groups?
- How to Protect & Save Mountain Gorillas
- Why Gorillas Are So Strong
- How Many Humans Does it Take to Beat a Gorilla?
- How do you call a Baby Gorilla?
- How Do Gorillas Sleep?
- How Mountain Gorillas Communicate
- The Gorilla Life Cycle
- Do Gorillas drink water?
- Are Gorillas friendly & gentle to humans?
- Why do Apes, Gorillas beat their chest & sound hollow?
- Gorilla Threats: Why Mountain Gorillas were endangered?
- Why were Mountain Gorillas going extinct?
- What is a Silverback Gorilla?
- Gorilla Species: Different Kinds/Types of Gorilla & Breeds
- Mountain Gorilla Diet
- Mountain Gorilla Size, Average Height & Weight Measurements
- Natural Mountain Gorilla Predators
- Mountain Gorilla Population
- Lifespan of Mountain Gorillas
- Mountain Gorilla Natural Habitat
- Mountain Gorilla Conservation Efforts
- Mountain Gorilla Behavior
- How to Survive a Gorilla Attack on Humans
- Are Gorillas Dangerous to the People
- Why are Gorillas Poached in Africa
- How Gorillas Adapt to Rain-forest Environment
- Interesting Facts about Mountain Gorillas in Africa
- Traits, Qualities & Characteristics of Mountain Gorillas
- How Strong is a Silverback Gorilla?
- Best Place to See Mountain Gorillas in Africa
- Uganda Gorilla Families
- Rwanda Gorilla Families
- Congo Gorilla Families
