![]() ![]() Even though they display a calm and collected demeanor, a gorilla has a terrifying bark/roar when threatened. Chimpanzees are much more aggressive and the dominant male has a lot of work to do in containing group members. Their groups are far more stable with members very loyal to each other compared to chimpanzees. If a male succeeds in staying with his family, he will lay low, mate with some of the females and waits to take over from his aged father.Īlthough chimpanzees are thought to be the more intelligent ape, gorillas are calmer, more peaceful, persistent and wiser. In their lonely life, they will attempt to snatch females from stable groups. A mature male may stay with his group of birth but are in most cases driven away by the dominant silverback to start a life alone or join other bachelor males. This movement is to avoid inbreeding and competition for the attention of the dominant Silverback. Young females always leave the group once they are sexually maturity to join lone males or other groups. Mating in gorillas is often initiated by the female as soon as she is fertile. The stability of a gorilla group depends entirely on the bond between the females and the dominant silverback. The group may include younger males, juveniles, females and their babies. A gorilla group or family can contain between 4 to 30 individuals who can live up to 35 years in the wild (45 in captivity). There are cases where a group may be led by two related silverbacks but this is not common in some gorilla subspecies. Gorillas live in groups led by a dominant silverback. It is the young that climb and sleep on short tree branches most of the time. Because of their weight, adult gorillas avoid climbing trees if they can. Those in captivity may grow fatter and heavier because of less exercise or space in which to exercise. ![]() Silverbacks are larger than the females and can weigh between 135 to 220 kilograms in the wild. Adult male gorillas are called silverbacks because of the silver/gray hairs on their back. Gorillas walk with all four legs most of the time but can stand erect especially when feeding on tree bark or displaying dominance. Hair covers the entire body except for the face, hands, feet and chest (for old silverbacks). They are powerful primates with muscular arms, thick chests, large nostrils and black/brownish hair. Wild Gorillas are only found in some of Africa’s tropical forests, wetlands, marshes, highlands and mountains. Gorillas display many of the behaviors/emotions common with humans such as sadness and laughter. Gorillas share 98% of their genetic code with humans. ![]() What are the different species of gorillas? Gorillas are the largest of the great apes and one of the closest relatives of man – after bonobos and chimpanzees. ![]()
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