Introduction

Gorillas are very interesting omnivores who inhabit the forests of Africa. Enormous mammals who are very strong and the largest of the living primates. Gorillas which are the next closest living relative to the human besides the chimpanzee are divided into two species, the mountain gorilla and the eastern lowland gorilla. While moving around using mostly their knuckles, gorillas weigh between 310 and 440 pounds, and spend most of the day eating.
Animals are very fun too look at and learn about. Kids like looking at pictures of animals and I feel when you see something, you learn better.

2 types of Gorillas

Lowland gorilla

Mountain gorilla

There are two different types of gorillas, the lowland gorilla and mountain gorilla. Mountain gorillas cover a wide range of elevations ranging all the way up to 4,267 m, while the lowland gorilla live in dense forests and lowland swamps and marshes as low as sea level. Lowland gorillas like a lot of fruit while mountain gorillas eat herbs, stems and roots taking up a majority of the omnivores day. Both species of gorillas are endangered and have been being poached for a long time.

Where do gorillas live?

Most of these gorillas live in tropical or subtropical forests. They exclusively line in the wilderness of Africa where they distribute into two parts- eastern and western parts of the forests. Their living areas have been reducing frequently do to the habitat getting fragmented and encroached. From some regions, gorillas have disappeared altogether the forests are getting destroyed.

Physical characteristics

Eastern gorilla (darker skin tone)

Western gorilla (Lighter skin tone)

Knuckle-walking

Gorillas move around a lot of the time with only their knuckles. (knuckle walking). Male gorillas usually range from 5 ft 5 in to 5ft 9 in weighin anywhere from 310-440 pounds. Females are usually half the size of males usually 4 ft 7 in weighing 220 pounds. Eastern gorillas are darker than western gorillas with mountain gorillas being the darkest in skin color with the thickest hair. Western gorillas have a skin color being brown or gray. Finally, gorillas that live in lowland are usually more trim then the mountain muscular gorilla.

Endangerment

Both the lowland and mountain gorilla are very endangered and have been threatened with poaching for many, many years. Gorillas have to survive habitat destruction and bushmeat which means wild animals getting killed for their meat. In 2004, a group of gorillas were wiped out by the Ebola virus, where studies say more than 5,000 gorillas got killed in recent outbreaks of the virus.

Food

Mountain gorilla feeding on steams

lowland gorilla eating

Surprisingly, gorillas don't seem to eat that much meat to become the size they get. Gorillas are Omnivores that love to eat: fruit, leaves, shoots and rarely insects. Most of this mammals time during the day goes to eating and looking for food. More specifically, mountain gorillas feed on green plant parts where as lowland gorillas feed on a lot of fruit.

References

1) http://www.berggorilla.org/english/faq/dvers/fragen/verbreit.html
2) www.berggorilla.org/english/faq/dvers/fragen/verbreit.html - 3k
3) www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/apes/gorilla/
4) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gorillas#Physical_characteristics
5) http://www.berggorilla.org/english/faq/dvers/fragen/fressen.html