Save the African Glory, the Mountain Gorillas

Regarded as the second largest continent of the world, Africa boasts of a rich diversity of wildlife and landscapes. Its endless landscape provides homage to large predators roaming around the grasslands where herds of grazing herbivores have also found their habitat. Known as the originator of human life, Africa is home to many of the world's best treasured and most enthralling animals, as well as to some of its most endangered species like Mountain Gorillas (gorilla beringei beringei)

Paralleled to their other primates, these gorillas have dense fur which enable them to survive in temperatures below zero degree Celsius. Just like humans, their height ranges between 5-6 ft and they can weigh up to 180kgs.They are usually vegetarian and socially and emotionally, they are active just like humans. The male gorillas are popularly called as ‘silverbacks’ because of the extending silver hair lining on their back. Their territory lies high up in mountain woods and bamboo forests of east and central Africa, which are situated at an altitude up to 2,500-4,000 m.

Territorial Region

As per World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), 480 mountain gorillas have their habitation in the Virunga Mountains, a chain of volcanoes in East Africa, along the northern border of Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Uganda. A census report in 2011 recorded 400 gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda. The remaining live in the Mgahinga National Park and the Volcanoes National Park.

Threat to their Habitat