Creature Feature Encyclopedia: Mammalia

Mountain Gorilla Gorilla gorilla beringei Status: Endangered

Gorillas are big, hairy, and very strong. An adult male gorilla can grow to be six feet tall and may weigh 450 pounds. He could easily win a tug of war with six men. Even though they may look quite fierce, gorillas are really gentle. They live peacefully on the ground of the African rainforest in family groups called troops. A troop of gorillas may have five to thirty individuals. The head of each troop is and adult male called a silverback. Gorillas need to live in dense forests where they can find the huge amounts of leaves, stems, and fruits they need to survive. Adult gorillas eat about forty pounds of food each day! If they get enough food, and if they are not killed by hunters, gorillas can live to be fifty years old.

~A Walk in the Rainforest © 1992