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Western lowland gorilla

Gorilla gorilla gorilla.

• Conservation

Meet the Animals

Physical description.

The gorilla's coat color is black. Short, thin, gray-black to brown-black hair covers the entire body except the face. Western lowland gorillas may have a more brownish coloration. A small white tuft of hair on their rump distinguishes infants up to four years old. The white patch helps the mother keep track of the infant and assists other group members in identifying the gorilla as an infant.

Mature silverback males have a saddle of white hair across the small of their backs. In western lowland gorillas, the silver may extend to rump and thighs. Western lowland females may go gray below the ears and on the neck and top of the head as they age. Compared to other subspecies, western lowland gorillas have a more pronounced brow ridge and ears that appear small in relation to their heads. They also have a differently shaped nose and lip than other subspecies.

Adult male gorillas' heads look conical due to the large bony crests on the top and back of the skull. These crests anchor the massive muscles used to support and operate their large jaws and teeth. Adult female gorillas also have these crests, but they are much less pronounced.

In comparison to the mountain gorilla, the western lowland gorilla has a wider and larger skull, and their big toe is spread apart more from the alignment of the other four toes. Gorillas' arms are longer than their legs; when they move on all fours, they knuckle-walk, supporting their weight on the third and fourth digits of their curled hands. Like other primates, each individual has distinctive fingerprints. Gorillas also have unique nose prints.

Gorillas are the largest of the great apes, but the western lowland gorilla is the smallest of the subspecies. Males are much larger than females. Adult males weigh an average of 300 pounds (136.1 kilograms) and up to 500 pounds (226.8 kilograms). They stand up to 6 feet (1.8 meters) tall.

Adult females weigh from 150 to 200 pounds (113.4 kilograms) and stand up to 4.5 feet (1.4 meters) tall. Adult males have an arm span of 8 feet (2.4 meters), and females have an arm span of 6.5 feet (2 meters).

Native Habitat

Western lowland gorillas are broadly distributed across the Congo Basin, and are more or less continuously distributed across the countries of Gabon, Central Africa Republic, Cameroon, Angola, Equatorial Guinea, and Congo.

Though present historically in the Democratic Republic of Congo, they are now likely extinct there. Western lowland gorilla ranges have been measured from 9 to 14 square miles (14.5 to 22.5 square kilometers), rarely overlapping other troops.

The average distance traveled in a day is usually less than 1 mile (1.6 kilometers), with longer distances traveled when more fruit is abundant. Because of their large size, gorillas spend most of their time on the ground.

In the wild, gorillas live for 30 or 40 years. In human care, gorillas may live into their 50s.

Communication

Gorillas communicate using auditory signals, visual signals and odors. They are generally quiet animals but they may also scream, bark and roar. Scientists have heard up to 22 different gorilla vocalizations, each seeming to have its own meaning.

Some examples of gorilla "body language" include crouching low and approaching from the side when being submissive; walking directly when confident and standing, slapping their chests and advancing when aggressive.

Food/Eating Habits

Gorillas are primarily herbivorous, eating the leaves and stems of herbs, shrubs and vines. They also eat the fleshy fruits of close to a hundred seasonally fruiting tree species. Other gorilla subspecies eat proportionally less fruit. Gorillas get some protein from invertebrates found on leaves and fruits. Adult male gorillas eat about 45 pounds (32 kilograms) of food per day. Females eat about two-thirds of that amount.

At the Smithsonian's National Zoo, the group is fed together in the morning. Food items are cut up and spread over a wide area. In the summer, this is usually done in the yard. In the afternoon, individuals are separated so each animal gets its share of preferred food items. Morning and evening foods include chow, greens, fruits and vegetables.

Forage items placed in hay for the gorillas include popcorn, sunflower seeds, peanuts, "enrich bits," beans and diced fruits and vegetables. Fresh tree trimmings are given daily. Some of the gorillas favorite browse; options are Bradford pear, willow, mulberry with berries and maple.

There are three feeding behaviors sometimes observed in gorillas in human care that can bother visitors. These behaviors are natural, though not to humans. They are regurgitation and reingestion, coprophagy (eating feces) and urine drinking. Regurgitation and reingestion involves an animal regurgitating some of its food and re-eating it. Biologists do not entirely understand why gorillas exhibit this behavior in human care.

A few ideas include starch or sugar content, mineral recapture or the food tasting good. Provision of forage foods, increased smaller feedings and providing browse seem to reduce this behavior in some individuals. Coprophagy is seen in the wild and is defined as the eating of feces. Gorillas do not have very efficient digestive systems for a high fiber diet, so unprocessed food can be found in their feces. Coprophagy allows an animal to utilize this food. Similarly, urine drinking might be explained as the recollection of minerals.

Sleep Habits

Gorillas are most active in the morning and late afternoon. They wake up just after sunrise to search for food and eat for several hours. At midday, adults usually nap in a day nest while the young wrestle and play games. After their midday nap, they forage again. Before dusk, each gorilla makes its own nest. Infants nest with their mothers.

Social Structure

Gorillas are flexible in their nature and behavior. Thus, the information found here is only a general guide.

Gorillas live in groups, or troops, from two to over 30 members. But data seems to indicate that western lowland gorillas live in smaller groups, averaging about five individuals. Groups are generally composed of a silverback male, one or more black back males, several adult females and their infant and juvenile offspring. This group composition varies greatly due to births, deaths and the immigration and emigration of individuals.

Mature offspring typically leave their birth group to find a mate. At about eight years old, females generally emigrate into a new group of their choosing. They seem to choose which silverback to join based on such attributes as size and quality of his home range.

A female may change family groups a number of times throughout her life. When leaving their birth group, some sexually mature males may attempt to replace the silverback in an already established group. However, they usually spend a few years as bachelor males. Nevertheless, a new troop can be easily formed when one or more non-related females join a lone male.

An adult, dominant, silverback males leads the group. He has exclusive breeding rights to the females though at times, he may allow other sub-adult males in the group to mate with females. The silverback mediates disputes and also determines the group's home range. He regulates what time they wake up, eat and go to sleep.

All gorillas over three years of age make both day nests for resting and night nests for sleeping. Infants share their mothers' nests. Gorillas form nests by sitting in one place and pulling down and tucking branches, leaves or other vegetation around themselves. Adult males usually nest on the ground. Females may nest on the ground or in trees. Juveniles are more apt to nest in trees. Studies of western lowland gorillas have shown that the number of nests found at a site does not necessarily coincide with the number of weaned animals observed in a group.

The western lowland gorilla is a quiet, peaceful and non-aggressive animal. It never attacks unless provoked. However, males do fight over females, and the new leader of a group may kill unrelated infants. This causes the females to begin cycling sooner. An adult male protecting his group may attempt to intimidate his aggressor by standing on his legs and slapping its chest with cupped or flat hands while roaring and screaming.

If this elaborate display is unsuccessful and the intruder persists, the male may rear his head back violently several times. He may also drop on all fours and charge toward the intruder. In general, when they charge they do not hit the intruder. Instead, they merely pass them by. This display of aggression maintains order among separate troops and reduces the possibility of injury. It is thought that size plays an important role in determining the winner of an encounter between males, with the larger male winning.

Gorillas exhibit complex and dynamic relationships. They interact using grooming behaviors, although less than most other primates. Affiliation may also be shown through physical proximity. Young gorillas play often and are more arboreal than the large adults. Adults, even the silverback, tolerate infant play behavior. He also tolerates and often participates in the play of older juveniles and black back males. Because of gorilla variability, some or all of these behaviors may or may not be seen.

Reproduction and Development

The duration and frequency of sexual activity in gorillas are low in comparison to other great apes. The silverback has exclusive mating rights with the adult females in his group. The reproductive success of males depends upon the maintenance of exclusive rights to adult females. The female chooses to mate with the silverback by emigrating into his family group. Normally quiet animals, some gorillas are notably loud during copulation.

There is no set time of year for gorilla births. Western lowland gorilla gestation lasts about eight and a half months. Birth occurs in a supine position over the course of a few minutes to several hours. The offspring are not born helpless. They have an instinctive grasp behavior seen in other primates allowing them to hold on to their mothers' chests.

Mothers can be seen supporting the infants for the first few months of life. Birth weight averages 4 pounds (2 kilograms). For the first couple of years, gorilla infants grow at twice the rate of a human baby. They can crawl and ride on their mothers' backs at 3 months old. They may continue to ride on their mothers' backs, chests or legs until they are 3.5-4 years old.

Females become sexually mature between 6 and 9 years of age, usually having their first baby between ten and eleven years old. The estrus cycle lasts 28 to 32 days. Ovulation is a two to three day period during which copulation occurs. While ovulating, the female signals her receptiveness to the male by her closer physical proximity to him, eye contact or staring, or displaying her rear end.

The interbirth interval is usually four and a half years. A female may have between three and six offspring in her lifetime. She is reproductive throughout her lifetime and does not experience menopause. As females become sexually mature, they transfer family groups or join lone males.

So-called "black back" males are generally eight to 12 years of age and sexually mature but not yet physically full-grown. Black backs also leave their birth family, but instead of entering a new family group, they can live alone or in all male groups until a young female chooses one of them to start a family. A black back may also challenge a silverback for an established territory and family group. At times, the heir apparent may stay in his birth family group. Silverback males are full adults at about 13 years of age or older.

Conservation Efforts

Western gorillas are a critically endangered species. They have been plagued by exceptionally high levels of disease and hunting, which has resulted in a population decline of over sixty percent in the past 20 to 25 years.

In 2007, IUCN's status for western gorillas was changed from endangered to critically endangered. This change occurred when it was discovered that one of two subspecies, the western lowland gorilla, had been devastated by the commercial bushmeat trade, the Ebola virus and the spread of logging, which alters forest structure and facilitates poaching.

Their population has declined by more than 60 percent over the last 20 to 25 years, with about one-third of the total population found in protected areas affected by the Ebola virus in the last 15 years. Cross River gorillas are also subject to hunting and habitat loss due to forest conversion, and their current population is small and fragmented.

A 2018 study estimates that more than 360,000 gorillas still inhabit the forests of Western Equatorial Africa, but 80 percent of those gorillas live outside of protected habitat.

Help this Species

• Support organizations like the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute that research better ways to protect and care for this animal and other endangered species. Consider donating your time, money or goods .
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The Zoo is home to seven western lowland gorillas that reside at the Great Ape House:

Baraka  is an adult male, or silverback, who resides in the gorilla troop with Mandara, Calaya, Kibibi and Moke. He is the largest member of our gorilla troop, weighing-in at more than 400 pounds. Baraka has a large crest on his head and a saddle of silver hair covering his back. He was born at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in April 1992, and spent about two years living at Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, Nebraska, during his mid-teens. In Omaha, he sired one offspring that did not survive. Baraka has sired one offspring, Moke, here in Washington, D.C.

Mandara  is an adult female who resides in the gorilla troop with Baraka, Calaya, Kibibi and Moke. She earned the nickname “Super Mom” due to having six offspring: Kejana, Kigali, Ktembe, Kwame, Kojo and Kibibi. She raised Baraka as her own offspring shortly after his birth. Mandara was born at the Lincoln Park Zoo in April 1982 and came to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in October 1985.

Calaya  is an adult female who resides in the gorilla troop with Baraka, Mandara, Kibibi and Moke. She is very socially savvy with the other gorilla members. Calaya was born in August 2002 at the Woodland Park Zoo and arrived at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in February 2015 on a breeding recommendation from the Gorilla Species Survival Plan.

Kibibi  is an adult female who resides in the gorilla troop with Baraka, Mandara, Calaya and Moke. She is full of energy and often plays with the other members of her troop. Kibibi is eager to participate in training and regularly seeks out play sessions with Moke. She was born at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in January 2009.

Moke is an young male who resides in the mixed-sex gorilla troop with Baraka, Calaya, Mandara and Kibibi. He was born at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo on April 15, 2018, to mother Calaya and father Baraka per a breeding recommendation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Species Survival.

Zahra,   an infant female, is the newest member of the gorilla troop. She was born at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute on May 27, 2023, to mother Calaya and father  Baraka per a breeding recommendation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Species Survival. The name "Zahra", which means "beautiful flower" in Swahili, was chosen in a public poll with over 25,000 votes cast.

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Gorilla Facts

Gorillas are large apes that are native to Africa. They are typically divided into two groups. The mountain gorilla lives in the mountainous regions of central Africa, while the lowland gorilla lives in the flat, dense forests of central and western Africa. Though the two types are very similar, they have a few differences. For example, mountain gorillas tend to have longer hair, whereas lowland gorillas have short, soft hair, according to the  Smithsonian . 

Another difference is size. Lowland gorillas are 4 to 6 feet (1.2 to 1.8 meters) tall and weigh 150 to 400 lbs. (68 to 181 kilograms). Mountain gorillas are about the same height, though they tend to weigh a bit more. They are 4 to 6 feet tall and weigh 300 to 485 lbs. (135 to 220 kg). According to the World Wildlife Federation & (WWF), gorillas are the world's largest primate. 

Mountain gorillas live in Rwanda, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on green, volcanic mountains. Lowland gorillas live in the forests of central and western Africa in Equatorial Guinea, Angola, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Congo, Gabon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. A group of gorillas can have a territory of up to 16 square miles (41 square kilometers), according to  National Geographic .

What do gorillas eat?

Gorillas are generally herbivores. They usually eat vegetation such as wild celery, shoots, roots, fruit, tree bark and tree pulp, but they have been known to eat small animals and insects. A male can eat up to 40 lbs. (18 kg) of vegetation each day.

Gorillas' exact diet depends on where they live. According to  Sea World , about 67 percent of a lowland gorilla's diet is fruit; 17 percent comes from leaves, seeds and stems; and 3 percent comes from termites and caterpillars. The mountain gorilla eats a diet that is about 86 percent leaves, shoots and stems; 7 percent roots; 3 percent flowers; 2 percent fruit; and 2 percent snails, ants and grubs. 

Gorillas live in groups. Groups of gorillas are called troops or bands. A band of gorillas can have as many as 50 members, though sometimes a band consists of as few as two members. Troops are led by a dominant male, called a silverback, which can often be identified by a gray strip of hair on his back.

Each time of day has its purpose for a troop of gorillas. Mornings and evenings are designated as feeding time. In the middle of the day, gorillas take a nap, play with other gorillas or groom one another. At night, the gorillas settle down in beds, made from leaves and twigs, to sleep.

Like humans, female gorillas are pregnant for nine months and usually give birth to only one infant at a time. Newborn gorillas weigh about 4 lbs. (1.8 kg). From the time they're about 4 months to 2 or 3 years old, young gorillas ride on their mothers' backs as a form of transportation. 

At around 7 to 10 years, the young gorilla will become mature enough to have its own offspring. At this point, the gorilla will leave its mother's group to find a mate. Gorillas can live around 35 years in the wild and more than 50 years in zoos, according to the WWF.

Classification/taxonomy

The taxonomy of gorillas, according to the Integrated Taxonomic Information System(ITIS), is:

Kingdom : Animalia Subkingdom : Bilateria   Infrakingdom : Deuterostomia   Phylum : Chordata Subphylum : Vertebrata Infraphylum : Gnathostomata   Superclass : Tetrapoda   Class : Mammalia  Subclass : Theria  Infraclass : Eutheria   Order : Primates  Suborder : Haplorrhini         Infraorder : Simiiformes Superfamily : Hominoidea Family : Hominidae  Subfamily : Homininae Genus & species :  Gorilla gorilla, Gorilla beringei Subspecies : 

• Gorilla gorilla gorilla  (Western lowland gorilla)
• Gorilla gorilla diehli  (Cross River gorilla)
• Gorilla beringei graueri  (Eastern lowland gorilla)
• Gorilla beringei beringei  (Mountain gorilla)

[ Gallery: Great Apes: All 4 Gorilla Subspecies ]

Conservation status

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) lists the Gorilla beringei species (mountain gorillas and Eastern lowland gorillas) as endangered on its Red List of Threatened Species. They are hunted and their habitat has been destroyed by mining and agriculture. IUCN estimates that there are about 680 mountain gorillas left in two isolated populations. While data are lacking to determine the population of Eastern lowland gorillas, the IUCN says it is believed that the total population has decreased dramatically.  

According to the IUCN, the  Gorilla gorilla species (Western lowland gorillas and Cross River gorillas) is critically endangered, with a population reduction of more than 80 percent over three generations (a generation is about 22 years). It is unknown exactly how many of these gorillas are left. The WWF estimates that there are about 100,000 lowland gorillas still in existence.

Other facts

Gorillas' arms are longer than their legs. This allows them to walk on all four limbs while still remaining somewhat upright. 

These primates are very intelligent. They can use simple tools and learn sign language. 

Gorilla beds are called nests. Young gorillas often make their nests in trees, and older gorillas make their nests on the ground.

Gorillas usually don't need to drink water from lakes or streams. They get all of the moisture they need from their food and morning dew.

Additional resources

• The Gorilla Organization
• Smithsonian National Zoological Park: Gorilla Facts
• Sea World: Gorilla Animal Information Book
• World Wildlife Federation: Gorilla Facts

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A mountain gorilla mother cuddles her three-month-old infant in Rwanda's Volcanoes National Park.

Mountain gorilla

There are about a thousand mountain gorillas remaining on Earth, and about half live in the forests of the Virunga mountains in central Africa. Mountain gorillas are a subspecies of eastern gorilla ( Gorilla beringei ). As their name hints, they live in the mountains at elevations between 8,000 and 13,000 feet.

Conservation

These gorillas live on the green, volcanic slopes of Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo—areas that have seen much human violence from which the gorillas have not escaped unscathed. Habitat loss is a major threat: agriculture, illegal mining, and forest destruction for charcoal production have degraded their forests. They often get caught in snares laid out to trap other animals for bushmeat. Climate change also poses a threat: While gorillas are adaptive, moving to higher elevations to adapt to warmer temperatures, those areas are densely populated with little forest remaining. Catching illnesses from humans is also a threat. The majority of mountain gorillas are habituated to human presence because of the tourism industry, and while there are strict sanitation protocols in place and touching the gorillas is prohibited, disease could spread quickly.

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature, which sets the conservation status of species, changed their status from "crticially endangered" to "endangered" in 2008 as their numbers improved. Scientists, however, warn that they could quickly slip back into being critically endangered.

Alpha males and social behavior

To stay warm in the mountains, mountain gorillas have longer hair than their eastern lowland cousins, the Grauer's gorillas ( Gorilla beringei graueri ). They also tend to be a bit larger than other gorillas and have shorter arms.

Gorillas can climb trees, but are usually found on the ground in communities of up to 30 individuals. These troops are organized according to fascinating social structures. Troops are led by one dominant, older adult male, often called a silverback because of the swath of silver hair that adorns his otherwise dark fur. Troops also include several other young males, some females, and their offspring.

The leader organizes troop activities like eating, nesting in leaves, and moving about in a home range of 0.75-to 16 square miles.

Those who challenge this alpha male are apt to be cowed by impressive shows of physical power. He may stand upright, throw things, make aggressive charges, and pound his huge chest while barking out powerful hoots or unleashing a frightening roar. Despite these displays and the animals' obvious physical power, gorillas are generally calm and nonaggressive unless they are disturbed.

In the thick forests of central and west Africa, troops find plentiful food for their vegetarian diet. They eat roots, shoots, fruit, wild celery, and tree bark and pulp.

Reproduction

Female gorillas give birth to one infant after a pregnancy of nearly nine months. Unlike their powerful parents, newborns are tiny—weighing four pounds—and able only to cling to their mothers' fur. These infants ride on their mothers' backs from the age of four months through the first two or three years of their lives.

Young gorillas, from three to six years old, remind human observers of children. Much of their day is spent in play, climbing trees, chasing one another, and swinging from branches.

In captivity, gorillas have displayed significant intelligence and have even learned simple human sign language.

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Copyright © 1996-2015 National Geographic Society Copyright © 2015-2024 National Geographic Partners, LLC. All rights reserved

PIN welcomes primatologists who are working directly with species to  send updates  for our fact sheets any time, including sources. We also welcome all readers to send updates and sources for consideration: we will check with the experts before adding these updates. We advise readers to use our fact sheets as just one source of information and to always research additional sources.

• EVOLUTION & ECOLOGY
• BEHAVIOR & SOCIALITY
• CONSERVATION STATUS

Suborder: Haplorrhini Infraorder: Simiiformes Superfamily: Hominoidea Family: Hominidae Genus: Gorilla Species: G. beringei , G. gorilla Subspecies: G. b. beringei , G. b. graueri , G. g. diehli , G. g. gorilla

Other names: gorilla (Finnish); gorille (French); gorilla (German); gorila (Spanish); bergsgorilla, gorilla, or låglandsgorilla (Swedish); G. gorilla : western gorilla; G.g. diehli : Cross River gorilla; G.g. gorilla : western lowland gorilla; G. beringei : eastern gorilla; G.b. beringei : Bwindi, mountain, or Virunga; G.b. graueri : eastern lowland gorilla or Grauer’s gorilla

Western and eastern gorillas are more genetically distant from one another than are chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes ) and bonobos ( Pan paniscus ) (Butynski 2001). There are few striking physical differences between subspecies of gorilla, though differences in dentition and craniometric analyses reveal distinguishing morphological characteristics of each subspecies (Rowe 1996; Leigh et al. 2003). To some extent, even the inexperienced observer can distinguish the subspecies from one another. Mountain gorillas have significantly longer hair than their conspecifics , while western gorillas have brown, not black, hair on their heads, and eastern gorillas have longer faces and broader chests than western gorillas (Rowe 1996; Nowak 1999). Gorillas have dark brown to black fur and black skin. Dominant adult males, called silverbacks, have a prominent sagittal crest and striking silver coloration from their shoulders to rump. Males and females are sexually dimorphic , with males weighing up to 181 kg (400 lb) in the wild and 227 kg (500 lb) in captivity and measuring, on average, 1700 mm, while females weigh between 72 and 98 kg (159 and 216 lb) and measure, on average, 1500 mm (4.92 ft) (Rowe 1996).

Spending the majority of their lives on the ground, the main locomotion pattern of gorillas is quadrupedal knuckle-walking although they do climb and spend limited amounts of time standing bipedally . Because of their sheer size, adult gorillas must climb near the main trunk of a tree or on large branches while juveniles and adolescents are more agile (Tutin et al. 1995; Rowe 1996).

Gorillas live between 30 and 40 years in the wild and up to 50 years in captivity (Stoinski pers. comm.).

CURRENT RANGE MAPS (IUCN REDLIST): Gorilla beringei | Gorilla gorilla

Gorillas are patchily distributed in east central and equatorial west Africa, separated by the Congo River and its tributaries. Western gorillas (including western lowland and Cross River gorillas) are found in a geographic area of about 709,000 km² (273,746 mi²) covering parts of Nigeria, Cameroon, Central African Republic (CAR), Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Republic of Congo, Angola, and far-western Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Cross River gorillas are found in only a 750 km² (290 mi²) area in Nigeria and Cameroon, a pocket of land that is isolated from the majority of this region. Eastern gorillas (including mountain and eastern lowland gorillas) are found in portions of eastern DRC, Uganda, and Rwanda, in an area approximately 112,000 km² (43,243 mi²), though mountain gorillas are restricted to two locations, Virunga Volcanoes where the borders of Uganda, Rwanda, and DRC meet, and Bwindi-Impenetrable National Park, Uganda (Nowak 1999; Butynski 2001; Sarmiento 2003).

Population estimates based on nest counts, known areas of available habitat, and population density reveal startlingly low numbers for some subspecies: as high as 110,000 ( G.g. gorilla ), 250 to 300 ( G.g. diehli ), 17,000 ( G.b. graueri ), and 700 ( G.b. beringei ) (Butynski 2001; Plumptre et al. 2003; Stoinski pers. comm.). There are about 350 gorillas in zoos in the United States, all of them are western lowland gorillas (Goodall et al. 2003).

For more than 30 years, ongoing field research on the mountain gorillas has made them the most studied subspecies of gorilla. George Schaller conducted the first long-term research study on mountain gorillas starting in 1959. In 1967, notable researcher Dian Fossey spearheaded the Karisoke Research Center in the Virunga Volcanoes and since the inception of this field site, researchers have been unraveling the complexities of gorilla society, behavior, and ecology by studying habituated groups (it is one of the only study sites where gorillas are fully habituated). Another long-term study site is at the Lopé Reserve of Gabon, where Caroline Tutin and Michael Fernandez have been studying western lowland gorillas since 1984 (Doran & McNeilage 1997). Most of the information available about wild eastern lowland gorillas comes from studies in Kahuzi-Biega National Park in DRC (Tutin & Vedder 2001).

Because of their great geographical separation, about 750 km (466 mi), western and eastern gorillas live in dramatically different habitats (Tutin & Vedder 2001). Even within-species habitat variation is quite great, from swamp to montane forest. Eastern gorillas live in submontane and montane forests from 650 to 4000 m (2132 to 13,123 ft) (Butynski 2001; Sarmiento 2003). Mountain gorillas live at the highest elevations, from 2200 to 4000 m (7218 to 13,123 ft), in the Virunga Volcanoes while eastern lowland gorillas occupy submontane forests from 700 to 2900 m (2297 to 9514 ft) (Butynski 2001). Where mountain gorillas exist, there are two rainy and two dry seasons per year, with average rainfall of 2000 mm (6.56 ft) per year (McNeilage 2001). The rainy seasons are from March until May and September to November while the dry seasons are June through August and December through February (McNeilage 2001; Robbins & McNeilage 2003). Temperatures range between 3.9° C (39° F) and 14.5° C (58° F), though they may reach 25.8° C (78.44° F) (Sarmiento 2003). Eastern lowland gorillas live in primary and secondary forests in both highland and lowland forests across their range. They occupy montane, bamboo, and lowland forests at elevations of 600 to 3308 m (1969 to 10,853 ft) (Ilambu 2001). There are two rainy seasons, the first lasting from March to June and the shorter lasting from September to December. There are also two dry seasons, the longer from June to September and the shorter from December until March (Yamagiwa et al. 1996).

Western gorillas live in lowland, swamp, and montane forests from sea level to 1600 m (5249 ft) (Butynski 2001; Sarmiento 2003). As their common name implies, western lowland gorillas live in lowland and swamp forests at elevations up to 1600 m (5249 ft) while Cross River gorillas inhabit low-lying and submontane forests at elevations from 150 to 1600 m (492 to 5249 ft) (Sarmiento 2003). Western lowland gorillas that live in mixed swamp forests experience one rainy and one dry season per year. Average rainfall is 1526 mm (5.01 ft) with the greatest amount of rain falling between August and November and diminishing during December through March (Poulsen & Clark 2004).

The considerable dietary differences between mountain, western, and eastern lowland gorillas impact home range size and social behavior. Despite these differences, though, all gorilla groups exhibit synchronized activities and, throughout the day, alternate between rest periods and travel or feeding periods (Stewart 2001). Mountain gorillas are folivores , feeding on leaves, stems, pith, and shoots of terrestrial herbaceous vegetation. They preferentially choose high quality, high protein, low fiber, and low tannin foods from a small number of species and incorporate little fruit into their diets (McNeilage 2001). Where bamboo is available, it is usually favored and they spend much time digging to unearth tender shoots. Because they depend on a readily available, easily accessed food source, there is little competition for resources between groups, their home ranges are small, typically between three and 15 km² (1.16 and 5.79 mi²), and they move only 500 m (.311 mi) or less within a typical day (McNeilage 2001; Robbins & McNeilage 2003). Though they only utilize a few species in each habitat, mountain gorillas show wide dietary flexibility which enables them to occupy a wide variety of habitats within their range (McNeilage 2001).

The diet of eastern lowland gorillas is more diverse than the mountain gorillas’ and changes seasonally. While leaves and pith are staple parts of their diets, eastern lowland gorillas depend heavily on fruit (25 percent of their total diet), especially during the times of year when fruits are abundant. When they include insects in their diet, eastern lowland gorillas prefer ants (Yamagiwa et al. 1994). Eastern lowland gorillas generally use a small area for a few days and then travel long distances to another area. Eastern lowland gorillas that depend more heavily on fruit must travel farther in a day to find fruiting trees and have larger home ranges because of a relative scarcity of fruit. Their home ranges vary from 2.7 to 6.5 km² (1.04 to 2.51 mi²) while their day range is between 154 and 2280 m (.096 and 1.42 mi) (Yamagiwa et al. 1996).

Western lowland gorillas have little dependable access to high quality terrestrial herbs across their range, but some areas are rich in aquatic herbs and they do eat herbaceous vegetation. Fruit is widely available, though dispersed, across their range, and is a central component of their diet, especially during times of fruit abundance (Tutin 1996; Doran & McNeilage 2001; Doran et al. 2002). Termites and ants are also important dietary staples. Western lowland gorillas have the largest home ranges and travel the farthest of all gorilla subspecies because of their reliance on fruit. The average distance traveled per day is 1105 m (.687 mi) and western lowland gorillas range over seven to 14 km² (2.70 to 5.41 mi²) (Tutin 1996).

In some parts of their ranges, gorillas are sympatric with chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes ) and dietary overlap in plant food and fruit is great. Where they occur together, gorillas and chimpanzees also have similar habitat use patterns and ecological competition is likely to occur (Kuroda et al. 1996). Though they share a similar niche, competition has not been recorded at any of the sites where the two apes overlap (McNeilage 2001).

Gorillas are vulnerable to predation by leopards ( Panthera pardus ), though direct documentation of attacks is difficult to obtain and rare. Evidence from leopard scat in areas where gorillas range is often the only means of confirming leopard predation, though even this is questionable as the large cats could simply be scavenging carcasses (Fay et al. 1995).

Content last modified: October 4, 2005

Written by Kristina Cawthon Lang . Reviewed by Tara Stoinski .

Cite this page as: Cawthon Lang KA. 2005 October 4. Primate Factsheets: Gorilla (Gorilla) Taxonomy, Morphology, & Ecology . <http://pin.primate.wisc.edu/factsheets/entry/gorilla/taxon>. Accessed 2020 July 22

See also the Gorilla Gazette , a newsletter about gorilla care and conservation created by gorilla keepers at the Columbus Zoo and published from 1987-2013.

SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND BEHAVIOR

Current knowledge on the social organization and behavior of gorillas is dominated by results from research on mountain gorillas though there are some data for eastern and western lowland gorillas. The minimum group size for all subspecies is two individuals (usually a silverback and a female), except for males ranging alone, while maximum group size varies slightly for each subspecies (Yamagiwa et al. 2003). The maximum group size for mountain gorillas can exceed 20 individuals, while eastern and western lowland gorillas generally are not found in groups larger than 17 to 20 individuals and western lowland gorilla groups are always observed in groups smaller than 20 individuals (Yamagiwa et al. 2003).

Mountain gorillas live in age-graded groups of, on average, 9.2 individuals, with one adult male (though there may be more than one), multiple adult females, and their offspring (Watts 1996; Doran & McNeilage 1997; Robbins 2001). Natal dispersal is much more common for females than for males in mountain gorillas (Watts 1996). In general, females emigrate from their natal groups to avoid inbreeding. They do not always stay in their new groups throughout their lives and secondary transfer is common (Watts 1996; Robbins 2001). Males either remain in their natal groups or disperse. If young males remain in their natal groups, they will be subordinates to the silverback, but may have the opportunity to mate with new females or become dominant if the silverback dies. The other strategy for mountain gorilla males is to leave their natal groups and become solitary, attracting emigrating females and starting new social groups. In groups containing only one silverback male, females disperse and find new social groups upon the death of the silverback (Yamagiwa & Kahekwa 2001). This may be related to high rates of infanticide documented among mountain gorillas at Karisoke. Infants deprived of protection by an adult male are almost certain to be killed and as a tactic to protect against this, females join new groups in the absence of a silverback (Watts 1989). Until recently, infanticide had only been recorded among mountain gorillas; direct evidence now exists for eastern lowland gorillas and indirect evidence has been recorded among western lowland gorillas (Stokes et al. 2003; Stoinski pers. comm.). Finally, males can live in all-male groups, although this seems to be a strategy generally employed by young males when their group disintegrates before they reach adulthood (Stoinski pers. comm.).

Eastern lowland gorillas generally live in groups of one male, multiple females, and their offspring, though these can shift to multi-male groups for brief periods (Yamagiwa et al. 2003). The average group size is 9.8 individuals (Yamagiwa & Kahekwa 2001). Males spend a few months to a few years alone after emigrating from their natal groups at or before the age of 15, eventually attracting dispersing females and creating a new social group (Yamagiwa et al. 2003). Average age of transfer for female eastern lowland gorillas is nine (Yamagiwa & Kahekwa 2001; Yamagiwa et al. 2003). Female gorillas do not always emigrate independently; sometimes they transfer with another female to join a solitary male. Group succession, as seen in male mountain gorillas that remain in their natal groups, has not been observed in eastern lowland gorillas. If the silverback dies, the multi-female group and their offspring may continue to associate, rather than disperse, until a maturing silverback transfers into the group (Yamagiwa & Kahekwa 2001). One possible explanation for this behavior is protection against predators. Rather than roaming with just their offspring, females remain in groups of unrelated individuals to decrease chance of being attacked by leopards (Yamagiwa & Kahekwa 2001).

Difficulties with habituation and ecological constraints on observation have limited the research on social behavior of western lowland gorillas (Magliocca et al. 1999; Parnell 2002; Stokes et al. 2003). Group composition in western lowland gorillas is generally one silverback, multiple females, and their offspring with groups averaging 8.4 individuals (Parnell 2002). Groups with two silverbacks have been observed at several sites (Stoinski pers. comm.). Males generally emigrate from their natal groups and are solitary, as is seen in eastern lowland gorillas. Western lowland gorillas were not thought to live in bachelor groups btu there is now evidence from several sites that males will coexist without breeding females; group composition generally consists of a single adult male plus several younger males and nonreproductive females (Stoinski pers. comm.). Both natal and secondary transfers are observed in female western lowland gorillas and, as is seen in mountain gorillas, when the silverback dies, groups disband and females immigrate into new groups (Stokes et al. 2003). Though it has never been directly observed among western lowland gorillas, infanticide is the probable cause of this behavior. Females protect against infanticide when their resident silverbacks die by seeking the protection of other adult males in new groups (Stokes et al. 2003).

Knowledge about social relationships is most extensive for mountain gorillas. The core of social groups is the male-female bond, which is reinforced by grooming and close proximity (Watts 2003). It is important for female mountain gorillas to develop strong relationships with males because males offer such services as protection against predators, protection against infanticide by other males, and mating opportunities (Watts 2001). It is common to see aggressive behavior between males and females, though rarely is it intense or does it lead to serious injury (Watts 1996). Female-female relationships vary, but generally differentiate along lines of relatedness; maternal relatives associate closely and often affably interact. Generally, though, female gorillas have limited friendly relationships and multiple aggressive encounters (Watts 1996). These aggressive encounters often revolve around social access to males, and males intervene in contests between females (Watts 2003). Relationships between male gorillas are generally weak, especially in heterosexual groups where the dominance hierarchy is quite apparent and there is strong competition for mates. Relationships between members of all-male groups, in those subspecies where they occur, are slightly more affiliative , and they socialize through play, grooming, and close proximity (Robbins 2001).

REPRODUCTION

Data from wild mountain gorillas and captive western lowland gorillas provide the majority of information about reproductive parameters of gorillas and the differences between the subspecies are few. Menarche occurs in female gorillas around age six and is followed by a period of adolescent infertility that usually lasts two years (Czekala & Robbins 2001). The estrus cycle lasts between 30 and 33 days and there are very subtle outward signs of ovulation , unlike the very obvious sexual swellings seen in chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes ) and bonobos ( P. paniscus ). Gestation lasts 8.5 months. For wild mountain gorillas, the average age at first parturition is 10 years and the interbirth interval is four years (Czekala & Robbins 2001). It is more difficult to assess male reproductive maturity because they can be fertile before exhibiting secondary sexual characteristics (the silver saddle that characterizes adult males). Males between eight and 12 years are called blackbacks (Robbins 2001). In captivity, though, males can sire offspring by the age of six (Stoinski pers. comm.). Usually by age 12 or 13, males can be considered silverbacks, but most will not reach their full adult size until the age of 15 (Czekala & Robbins 2001).

There is no evidence of birth seasonality and mating occurs year-round (Watts 1991; 1998). A female will initiate copulation by pursing their lips and slowly approaching a male, establishing prolonged eye contact. If he does not respond she may reach towards him, touch him, or slap the ground in front of her to attract his attention (Sicotte 2001). In groups with multiple males, solicitation is taken as indication of female preference, though females may be coerced to mate with multiple males during the estrus period (Sicotte 2001). A male initiates copulations by approaching the female and displaying at her or touching her and giving a “train grunt” vocalization (Watts 1991).

PARENTAL CARE

Since mortality is as high as 38% in mountain gorillas during the infancy period (from birth to three years), caregivers, primarily females, are acutely important in the survival of their infants (Watts 1989). Because of their long period of development and dependence, gorilla mothers can expect to invest years caring for their vulnerable offspring. Although male gorillas do not take an active role in caring for infants, they play an important role in their socialization, often associating with older infants and juveniles (Stewart 2001). The relationship that develops between the silverback and infants in his group is usually supportive; he serves as an attachment figure during the difficult time of weaning and he shields young gorillas from intragroup aggression by intervening in disputes involving older, more dominant individuals (Stewart 2001).

For the first five months of life, infant mountain gorillas remain in constant contact with their mothers and females seek close proximity to their resident silverback for protection (Stewart 2001). During this period, infants are dependent on their mothers for food, suckling at least once per hour, and sleep at night in their mothers’ nests (Stewart 1988). After five months, mother-infant pairs break body contact, but only for a few seconds and by 12 months, infants venture up to, but never more than, five meters (16.4 ft) away from their mothers. By 18 to 21 months, this distance between the pair is regular and increases (Fletcher 2001). Concurrent with this decrease in proximity is a decrease in nursing frequency, with infants only nursing once every two hours (Stewart 1988). By the age of 30 months, infants spend only half of their time with their mothers.

The juvenile period is from three to six years and is characterized by a decrease in maternal grooming, no longer sharing a sleeping nest with the mother, and weaning (Stewart 2001). Because of the enormity of the task of rearing infants and the stress of lactation on the mother’s body, female gorillas experience lactational amenorrhea until the infant is weaned at three or four years. After the infant is weaned, the mother begins to ovulate and shortly thereafter becomes pregnant (Stewart 1988; 2001). Weaning conflict is minimized in gorillas, compared to other great apes, because of the cohesive nature of gorilla groups. The constant availability of play partners (including the silverback) may contribute to less intense conflict between mother and infant during this period (Fletcher 2001).

COMMUNICATION

Vocal communication among gorillas is important in within-group interactions as well as extra-group interactions. Within-group calls, include “copulatory grunts” and “whimpers” during copulation, “whines” and “whimpers” by infants, “play chuckles” during play, “intense” and “mild cough grunts” during mild threat displays, and “close” calls that include both “syllabled” and “non-syllabled” calls such as “train-grunts” and “dog whines” (Fossey 1972; Harcourt et al. 1993). “Close” calls are commonly given within the group in situations of either potential separation or potential conflict. Extra-group calls serve to alert group members of potential predation and include “barks” or are given as long-distance threat displays upon detection of another group and include the “hoot series,” which may be accompanied by chest beating (Fossey 1972; Harcourt et al. 1993). Most calling occurs within-groups during feeding times, though gorillas also call during rest periods as well (Harcourt et al. 1993).

LISTEN TO VOCALIZATIONS

• Gorilla gorilla beringei: Belch   (African Primates at Home/Indiana University)
• Gorilla gorilla beringei: Chest-beat   (African Primates at Home/Indiana University)
• Gorilla gorilla beringei: Grunts, chestbeating   (Wild Sanctuary)

The communicative abilities of gorillas have also been studied in captivity, and one gorilla in particular, has been the focus of studies trying to understand language acquisition in humans. For over 30 years Francine Patterson has worked with Koko, a western lowland gorilla, teaching her American Sign Language and English. Today Koko can use over 500 signs and understand spoken English, though the physiological differences between apes and humans make it impossible for her to speak (Patterson & Gordon 2001).

Cite this page as: Cawthon Lang KA. 2005 October 4. Primate Factsheets: Gorilla (Gorilla) Behavior . <http://pin.primate.wisc.edu/factsheets/entry/gorilla/behav>. Accessed 2020 July 22.

INTERNATIONAL STATUS

For individual primate species conservation status, please search the  IUCN Red List . Also search the current scientific literature for primate conservation status (overall as well as for individual species), and visit  CITES  (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora).

Conservation information last updated in 2005 follows, for comparison:

All gorillas face a very high risk of extinction in the wild in the near future if current threats do not subside. Hunting, forest clearance for agriculture and timber, and disease are the main threats to gorilla survival and these problems continue to increase in intensity and extent. Gorillas, like many African primates, are also subject to human warfare in parts of their range.

CONSERVATION THREATS & POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS

Threat: human induced habitat loss and degradation.

Habitat loss and modification due to human activity is a primary threat to gorilla survival. Agriculture, logging, fuelwood and forest product collection, and grazing domestic animals all degrade gorilla habitat and are problems that only increase as the human population in Africa grows (Plumptre et al. 2003). Only about 20% of gorillas live inside protected areas where, in theory, they are safe from habitat modification by encroaching humans. The remaining 80% are severely threatened by human induced habitat modification (Harcourt 2003). Mountain gorillas, while numbering only a few hundred, live in well-protected national parks known as the Virunga Conservation Area comprised of Parc National des Virunga, Parc National des Volcans, and Mgahinga Gorilla National Park (Steklis & Gerald-Steklis 2001). Habitat destruction has subsided in this area in recent years (Tutin & Vedder 2001; Plumptre et al. 2003). The growing human population on all sides of the mountain gorillas’ habitat allows for little buffer between the apes, and human activities like cattle grazing and collection of forest products have been problematic in the past and may become so in the future if political instability results in another civil war (Oates 1995; Steklis & Gerald-Steklis 2001).

Eastern lowland gorillas living in war-torn DRC are losing habitat faster than any other gorilla population (Plumptre et al. 2003). Logging, agriculture, and livestock grazing are all important economic activities for humans that lead to habitat modification in the eastern lowland gorilla’s range. Lowland populations are being forced into higher altitudes where steep slopes are not conducive to farming or ranching, isolating the population even further (Ilambu 2001). Following wars in 1996 and 1998-99, a huge influx of refugees from Rwanda compounded the problem as more pressure was put on the forest for fuelwood and food collection. The potential far-reaching effects of this sudden increase in human population will not be known for some time (Ilambu 2001; Tutin & Vedder 2001). Mining prospects in DRC are also having devastating effects on the habitat and gorilla population (Stoinski pers. comm.). Ecotourism can be a positive, revenue-earning undertaking for some communities, but when poorly managed can have negative impact on the animals or ecosystems it has been implemented to save. In the case of eastern lowland gorillas, ecotourism has had a negative impact on the gorillas and their habitat. Implemented as a source of revenue for local communities, the large groups of frequent visitors severely impacted high-altitude vegetation and were disturbing to the gorillas (Tutin & Vedder 2001).

The majority of western gorillas live outside protected areas and are therefore most at threat from human induced habitat modification. Fortunately, though, where gorillas exist in the remote forests of the Congo Basin, they are not subject to human disturbance. Interestingly, though, gorillas can coexist with logging because they tend to favor the areas of secondary vegetation that grow after an area has been clear cut (White & Tutin 2001; Plumptre et al. 2003). Unfortunately, with logging comes habit fragmentation by logging roads and easy access by hunters. Forest products are in increasing demand in some parts of their range where human populations are high and continuing to grow, including Nigeria (Cross River gorilla), southern Congo, and parts of Equatorial Guinea (Tutin & Vedder 2001).

Potential Solutions

Great strides have been made in reversing the population decline of mountain gorillas. With the support of notable gorilla researcher Dian Fossey, the Mountain Gorilla Project was launched in Rwanda in 1979 and included multiple approaches to conservation including education, ecotourism, and patrols to keep people and cattle out of the protected habitat (Steklis & Gerald-Steklis 2001; Tutin & Vedder 2001). While the Mountain Gorilla Project became the International Gorilla Conservation Program and continues its work today, many other organizations have been involved in similar programs aimed at educating local people, mountain gorialls have become a source of regional and national pride in Rwanda (Tutin & Vedder 2001).

More security is needed surrounding the Kahuzi-Biega National Park, where eastern lowland gorillas are studied (Tutin & Vedder 2001). Though ecotourism was successful at this site at one time, poor management led to the disturbance of the gorilla population and the destruction of habitat. Because the interest still exists and it is quite a lucrative undertaking, well-managed ecotourism operations focusing on small groups of visitors at infrequent intervals may revive the local economy of this area of DRC. Unfortunately, political instability in the region may prevent this option currently, and some effort should be made to secure the region from encroachment of human populations that extract forest resources, by using guards and continued presence of researchers. Columbotantalite (also called Coltan) reserves scattered throughout DRC have also drawn thousands of people into gorilla habitat, affecting the gorilla populations. An ore used to make semiconductors for electronics, including cell phones and computers, in the late 1990s coltan was sold for US$80 per kilogram and was an attractive prospect for people who made less than US$30 per month (Plumptre et al. 2003). Unfortunately, huge reserves of this ore are found in Kahuzi-Biega National Park and thousands of settlers in mining camps severely affected the local population of eastern lowland gorillas.

Western lowland gorillas that occupy swamp habitats that are unsuitable for commercial logging and are difficult to access by local people trying to extract forest products during the rainy season should be the focus of conservation activities. These areas have high population densities of gorillas and should be protected from future human incursion (Tutin & Vedder 2001). Though it is a difficult task to convince people to protect a population that is not currently severely at risk, it must be emphasized that these populations are healthy and will remain that way only if they are unharmed by habitat destruction in pristine forests (Tutin & Vedder 2001). Where western lowland gorillas are threatened by agriculture and selective logging (southern Republic of Congo and Equatorial Guinea), efforts should be made to establish protected areas in congruence with active field research sites. The major parks that have been established in western lowland gorilla range include Dzanga-Sangha National Park in CAR and Nouablale-Ndoki National Park in Congo (Tutin & Vedder 2001). Another key area that has not attained protected status is Lopé Faunal Reserve in Gabon where researchers have worked hard to habituate the gorillas.

Threat: Invasive Alien Species

Gorillas are highly susceptible to human diseases, and where they are immunologically naïve, the influx of poachers, soldiers, local communities, and domestic animals facilitates the spread of pathogens in small communities (Mudakikwa et al. 2001; Plumptre et al. 2003). Gorillas in Republic of Congo and Gabon are currently threatened by an epidemic of Ebola hemorrhagic fever. Even in the most remote areas of their region, western gorilla populations have declined in congruence with human outbreaks of the disease and carcasses found have tested positive for Ebola (Walsh et al. 2003).

Some other examples of zoonotic transfer include an epidemic of scabies, or sarcoptic mange, documented among a group of mountain gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, the entire group was infected and it resulted in the death of an infant while respiratory illness claimed the lives of six mountain gorillas in the Virunga Volcanoes in 1988 (Wallis & Lee 1999). In the Virunga Conservation Area, emergency medicine and preventative health monitoring has been conducted by the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project since 1985 (Mudakikwa et al. 2001). The major groups that pose unique disease risk for mountain gorillas include local people, conservation personnel, and ecotourists (Mudakikwa et al. 2001). Though contact between gorillas and local people is limited to when they enter the park illegally or when gorillas leave the park boundaries and raid crops, this is significant enough to spread disease to the vulnerable gorillas including scabies, respiratory tract infections, intestinal parasites, skin disorders, and measles (Mudakikwa et al. 2001). Diseases are also transferred between park staff and tourists and gorillas as well, and while precautions are taken, this still poses a threat to the health of mountain gorillas.

Potential solutions

Educating local communities about zoonotic diseases may decrease disease transfer, and ideally, providing more widespread access to health care would also be useful. Where gorillas come in contact with researchers, park visitors, and staff, implementing even stronger protocol that includes face masks, gloves, required immunization, and further required distances from the animals may also decrease chances of disease transfer (Butynski 2001). Currently, field personnel working with the research populations of mountain gorillas take part in an employee health program designed to limit disease transfer to gorillas (Stoinski pers. comm.). In populations as small as the mountain and Cross River gorilla’s, it is imperative to minimize the possibility of infectious disease transfer as this could eliminate both populations entirely.

Research on vectors of and vaccines for the Ebola virus are necessary to alleviate both human and ape suffering in regions where outbreaks occur (Walsh et al. 2003). Coupled with epidemiological research, law enforcement is necessary to prohibit contact between humans and apes, especially in targeted regions. This includes forecasting disease movement (among both humans and gorillas), anticipating where the next outbreak is likely to occur, and implementing strict policies and effective law enforcement measures to isolate potential outbreaks.

Threat: Harvesting (hunting/gathering)

More threatening than habitat loss in some areas, hunting of gorillas for meat as well as capture of animals for collections are other hazards greatly affecting gorilla populations across Africa. Where human populations encroach on gorilla habitat and forest products such as fuelwood and timber are sought, poaching is generally also a problem, either for food or for sale (Plumptre et al. 2003).

Mountain gorillas in the Virunga Conservation Area are heavily protected and although poaching had been reduced to zero), the past few years has seen a resurgence in poaching for infants for the pet trade (Stoinski pers. comm.).

People living in the range of eastern lowland gorillas have traditionally had taboos against eating gorillas, though these customs are being quickly replaced. Civil war in DRC has led to mass hunger in the area as well and more often eastern lowland gorillas are being eaten for subsistence (Plumptre et al. 2003). Mining coltan in Kahuzi-Biega National Park has also led to drastic declines in gorilla populations, not simply because of habitat disturbance, but because of subsistence hunting by the thousands living in mining camps (Plumptre et al. 2003). Insecurity in the region prevents guards from stopping this influx of people and hunting will likely continue if the price of coltan increases in the future.

Western gorillas that live in areas where logging activity is ever-increasing are also subject to hunting. Logging and the bushmeat market are inextricably linked and unfortunately, the social structure of western lowland gorillas makes them particularly susceptible to devastation by only a few hunters (Tutin & Vedder 2001). Entire groups of western lowland gorillas can be wiped out by a single or a few poachers. The silverback in a group will approach and display against any perceived threat, including poachers, and in doing so, he is an easy target and is quickly killed. Poachers will capture the infants for sale as pets, often killing the mother that is defending her infant (Tutin & Vedder 2001). Moreover, poachers are able to reach the dense, most remote areas of forests as logging companies establish roads and transportation from small towns and cities is available deep into the forests (Butynski 2001; Plumptre et al. 2003). Company employees living in small logging towns are able to afford meat, and it is often less expensive to purchase bushmeat than other sources of protein. Almost all facets of the bushmeat trade are controlled or facilitated by logging companies: they sell guns and ammunition, provide cable for snares, transport poachers into the forests on trucks, carry the meat out on trucks, employees purchase it in town, and boats and trucks transport the meat to larger markets in cities (Butynski 2001; Wilkie & Carpenter 2001).

Economic value must be given to live gorillas if local communities are to stop pursuing them for meat. Alternately, world aid and development organizations must give fiscal incentives for gorilla-friendly development projects that include alternate protein sources. Education of local communities or stakeholders is also necessary if the bushmeat trade is to subside. Including stakeholders in research at field stations, guard duties, or education programs are all ways of providing economic opportunities and incentives for protecting gorillas as well as creating a bond between people and apes.

Foreign logging companies must also be held accountable by the global community for their role in the bushmeat trade. Boycotts of tropical hardwoods in developed countries that purchase lumber from these companies or cancellation of logging concessions in countries where companies are actively involved in transporting bushmeat could help (Butynski 2001). Furthermore, gorilla-friendly certification programs by independent consultants could validate the practices of logging companies and provide an alternative to western consumers that are interested in tropical wood (Butynski 2001).

In situ refuges and sanctuaries for orphan gorillas confiscated from markets play an important role in assisting law enforcement and as education centers for local people.

Threat: Accidental Mortality

The bushmeat market targets more animals than primates, snares and traps are set for duikers, pigs, and rodents as well (Mudakikwa et al. 2001; Wilkie & Carpenter 2001). Unfortunately, snares are frequent causes of human-induced injuries to gorillas and can lead to loss of limbs or severely painful deaths if not treated (Mudakikwa et al. 2001). Gorillas that are caught in snares struggle to free themselves and are often cut on their limbs, hands, and feet; if these cuts become infected, without proper medical attention, the gorilla may likely die (Mudakikwa et al. 2001; Plumptre et al. 2003).

Even with vigilant patrolling, snare removal is a constant challenge in areas where gorillas are sympatric with desirable animals (Hall et al. 1998; Plumptre et al. 2003). Mountain gorillas that encounter snares and are injured by them are treated by emergency medical staff of the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project. This process greatly decreases the chances of amputation and secondary bacterial infection. As the snare is removed, the wounds are cleaned and treated, and the injured animal is monitored to assess if follow up care is needed (Mudakikwa et al. 2003). Though there are great challenges and risks in undertaking this type of treatment for wild gorillas, it is a possibility for similarly habituated populations and has greatly reduced mortality caused by snare wounds among mountain gorillas. Snare patrols by researchers and field assistants coupled with intervention upon injury may decrease accidental mortality in gorillas.

Threat: Persecution

Large and imposing, gorillas are often perceived as dangerous by most humans who share their range and their image is not helped when they periodically raid plantations in some areas (Hart & Hall 1996; Tutin & Vedder 2001). Furthermore, gorillas that attack and seriously injure farmers on land adjacent to parks are even more despised and targets for retaliation (Butynski 2001).

Public education programs about gorillas may increase tolerance for them in local communities that come in contact with them on farms and plantations. Teaching members of the community about the uniqueness of gorillas and the ecosystem services they provide coupled with compensation for injuries or crops that are lost or damaged may improve gorilla-human relationships in some areas.

Threat: Natural Disasters

Cross River gorillas live in a tiny fragment of forest in Nigeria and Cameroon where the dry season is long and the forest is susceptible to destructive fires. Fires started outside their range by local farmers, hunters, and pastoralists can get out of control and sweep through the dry forest, causing significant damage (Oates et al. 2003).

Discouraging fire as a tool to clear land during this season is one approach to decrease the chance of forest fires. Limiting burning to certain times of year when the forest is not as vulnerable is another option to avoid devastating fires.

Threat: Changes in Native Species Dynamics

Though gorillas and chimpanzees have overlapping ranges at multiple sites throughout Africa, the two apes do not compete for access to resources, in fact, they actively avoid competition by exploiting different niches during different times of year (Kuroda et al. 1996; Yamagiwa et al. 1996).

The effect of leopard predation on gorilla populations is negligible (Fay et al. 1995).

Threat: Intrinsic Factors

Long interbirth intervals and high infant mortality make reproduction a slow process for all subspecies of gorillas. While these intrinsic factors do not limit population growth by themselves, when disrupted by disease, abnormally high infant mortality, stress from disturbance, and other environmental hazards, recruitment may dwindle (Butynski 2001; Tutin & Vedder 2001).

Higher mortality during the rainy season has been documented among mountain gorillas. Low temperatures coupled with heavy rainfall lead to conductive heat loss and respiratory infections (Watts 1998).

Severely isolated populations of gorillas are threatened by the effects of limited gene flow , restricted range, and low densities. Small populations are at risk of inbreeding depression , are vulnerable to stochastic events, and genetic fixation of deleterious alleles is possible (Oates et al. 2003).

The establishment of well-funded, well-run national parks is essential to gorilla conservation. Given the challenges of protecting habitat in countries ravaged by civil war, where human populations often live in substandard conditions, with few if any government services, and law enforcement is limited, the international community will have to support conservation efforts (Plumptre et al. 2003). Integrated conservation and development programs may be useful tools in areas where human suffering leads to loss of biodiversity and international aid organizations must be willing to create projects that provide opportunities for people without sacrificing the integrity of conservation goals.

Maintaining corridors of habitat between fragments of forest in which the least numerate subspecies exist as well as strict protection of these areas from poachers and encroachment by human populations will help bolster gene flow (Oates et al. 2003).

Threat: Human Disturbance

War and civil unrest are indisputable causes of loss of biodiversity in Africa. Well armed insurgents seek refuge in forests, move between borders, set up camps and kill gorillas for subsistence usage or sport. Moreover, masses of displaced people seek food and shelter as they flee from violent conflict. This has resulted in large tracts of land being cleared for fuelwood, hunting of gorillas for food, and transmission of disease between humans and gorillas. While the extent of the damage following conflict is largely unknown, there are undoubtedly negative impacts on all subspecies of gorillas (Vedder et al. 2001; Plumptre et al. 2003).

By looking at historical patterns of warfare and civil unrest, much can be learned about potential future threats to gorillas. For example, parks and reserves on country borders are extremely susceptible to becoming zones of military operations, park staff and their families are at very high risk if they remain to carry on their duties, and international monetary support is likely to dissipate as conflict heightens (Vedder et al. 2001). There are some positive lessons learned as well, though. Where ecotourist activities are important, less damage is likely to occur, in areas of long-term research and commitment, fewer losses are incurred, and the support and commitment of junior staff should not be underestimated (Vedder et al. 2001). While there are seemingly few solutions to the deep-rooted tensions in the region, conservationists should remain hopeful that the capacity for recovery, of both people and wildlife, is great and cannot be underestimated.

LINKS TO MORE ABOUT CONSERVATION

Conservation information.

• African Great Apes   (link broken) (WWF African Great Apes Programme, January 2005)
• Best Practice Guidelines for Great Ape Tourism   (by Elizabeth J. Macfie and Elizabeth A. Williamson with contributions from Marc Ancrenaz, Chloe Cipolletta, Debby Cox, Christina Ellis, David Greer, Chloe Hodgkinson, Anne Russon and Ian Singleton; IUCN Primate Specialist Group; 2010; PDF)
• Best Practice Guidelines for Mitigating Human – Great Ape Conflict   (IUCN; 2009)
• Best Practice Guidelines for Surveys and Monitoring of Great Ape Populations   (IUCN/SSC Primate Specialist Group; 2008)
• Best Practice Guidelines for the Re-introduction of Great Apes   (IUCN/SSC Primate Specialist Group)
• Best Practice Guidelines to Reduce the Impact of Logging   (IUCN/SSC Primate Specialist Group, 2007)
• Best Practices for Great Ape Conservation   (IUCN/SSC Primate Specialist Group; 2009)
• Central African Gorilla Habitat   (Satellite view)
• Congo Gorilla Forest: Gorilla Conservation (link broken)
• Gorilla Help Site
• Gorillas in the Soup
• GRASP: Great Apes Survival Project (link broken)
• Great Apes and FSC: Implementing ‘Ape Friendly’ Practices in Central Africa’s Logging Concessions (link broken) (IUCN; 2013; PDF)
• Mountain Gorilla Protection: A Geomatics Approach (link broken)
• Port Lympne’s gorilla Djala and family join wild primates in Gabon   (BBC; June 24, 2014)
• Slaughter of the Apes   (October 13, 2006)
• Tracking Mountain Gorillas in Uganda   (Wall Street Journal; June 7, 2013)
• Links for all species

CONSERVATION NEWS

• How Will Climate Change Affect Mountain Gorillas?   (Scientific American; October 1, 2013)
• Congo’s rare mountain gorillas could become victims of oil exploration   (The Guardian; August 1, 2013)
• Saving the Gorillas and Launching a Nation’s Tourism Economy   (The Atlantic; August 1, 2013)
• New conservation complex will protect critically endangered gorillas   (Environment News Network; July 9, 2013)
• Port Lympne’s gorilla Djala returned to Gabon with family   (BBC News; June 24, 2013)
• World Heritage Body Wants Drilling Ban in Gorilla Sanctuary   (Environment News Service; June 17, 2013)
• Eating this exotic meat may seriously damage your health   (The Independent; June 16, 2013)
• A return to childhood: seeking African gorillas at Volcanoes Natl Park (link broken) (Washington Times; March 15, 2013)
• Gorillas in our midst   (Yorkshire Post; May 20, 2013)
• Great Apes in Crisis: Thousands Poached and Stolen from the Wild Annually   (Scientific American; March 7, 2013)
• Gorillas Caught in the Crossfire in the Democratic Republic of Congo   (ScienceDaily; March 13, 2013)
• Lowland Gorillas, Protected in a Green Abyss (link broken)  (New York Times; January 31, 2013)
• New Park Protects 15,000 Gorillas   (ScienceDaily; January 31, 2013)
• The Congo: Gorillas in the wild   (Telegraph; January 16, 2013)
• The Perils and Rewards of Protecting Congo’s Gorillas   (Yale Environment 360; January 8, 2013)
• Primatologist warns of possible great ape extinction   (CBC News; December 14, 2012)
• Endangered primates caught in Congolese conflict   (NewScientist; November 28, 2012)
• Young Gorillas Outwit Poachers   (Audubon Magazine; November 28, 2012)
• Protected Mountain Gorilla Population Rises by Ten Percent in Two Years   (Smithsonian; November 15, 2012)
• The betrayal of John Kahekwa: how Britain let down an inspirational conservationist from Congo   (The Independent; October 31, 2012)
• Family of gorillas to be released in Gabon by Aspinall Foundation (link broken) (Kent Online; October 24, 2012)
• Can Ecotourism Save the Great Apes?   (Harvard University Press Blog ; October 22, 2012)
• Congolese rebels cash in on gorilla tourism to fund insurgency   (Guardian; October 19, 2012)
• Gamble in the jungle (need subscription?) (Financial Times; October 19, 2012)
• Great ape habitat in Africa has dramatically declined (link broken) (BBC; September 28, 2021)
• Dwindling space for Africa’s great apes   (Physorg; September 26, 2012)
• In the midst of gorillas (link broken) (Sydney Morning Herald; September 18, 2012)
• An ape-y ending: Gorilla families missing for three months found alive after warring factions let rangers into Congo forest   (Daily Mail; August 3, 2012)
• Fighters agree to gorilla survey in Virunga   (BBC News; July 24, 2012)
• Due piccoli gorilla distruggono le trappole dei bracconieri (link broken) (National Geographic Italia; July 23, 2012; in Italian)
• Young Mountain Gorillas Observed Destroying Poachers’ Snares for the First Time   (WebWire; July 17, 2012)
• How to Greet a Mountain Gorilla   (Time; June 6, 2012)
• Cross River Gorillas: Footage of Rare Apes Captured in Cameroon   (ABC News; May 9, 2012)
• Saving the Cross River Gorilla (link broken) (Voice of America; March 20, 2012)
• Ted Turner donates $1M to save gorillas (link broken) (Miami Herald; March 19, 2012)
• Researchers examine consequences of non-intervention for infectious disease in African great apes   (EurekAlert; February 6, 2012)
• Satellite study reveals critical habitat and corridors for world’s rarest gorilla   (EurekAlert; January 31, 2012)
• Gorilla trek   (Los Angeles Times; November 17, 2011)
• Trek of a Lifetime: Encountering Rwanda’s Gorillas Up Close (link broken) (Time; October 11, 2011)
• Baby gorilla on black market for $40,000 is rescued   (MSNBC; October 11, 2011)
• Gorilla poachers brutally murder forest ranger   (Mongabay; October 9, 2011)
• Corning Donates $25,000 to the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International (link broken) (MarketWatch; October 3, 2011)
• Mountain Gorilla Census On in Country   (The Monitor; October 3, 2011)
• Uganda: mountain gorillas and Batwa pygmies in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park   (Telegraph; September 29, 2011)
• Mountain Gorillas: The Rules of Engagement   (Mother Jones; September 9, 2011)
• Six Gorillas Repatriated   (allAfrica.com; August 18, 2011)
• Rwanda’s Post-Civil War Hope? Gorilla Tourism (link broken) (Time; July 21, 2011)
• Sick Leave   (Conservation Magazine; June 1, 2011)
• There’s no magic number for saving endangered species   (EurekAlert; May 16, 2011)
• Gorilla Haven Found in Cameroon (link broken) (Discovery News; March 28, 2011)
• Chimpanzee and gorilla heads seized in Gabon   (BBC News; January 20, 2011)
• Primatologists: the best hope for apes is the best hope for us   (Mongabay; December 15, 2010)
• Mountain gorilla population grows: census (link broken) (AFP; December 7, 2010)
• Going Ape in Central Africa: Meeting Our Closest Cousins in the Near-Wild Within Easy Reach of Major Cities   (Huffington Post; October 12, 2010)
• Interaction with rare mountain gorillas of Rwanda   (Economic Times; September 9, 2010)
• Gorillas Fight for Survival   (East African Business Week ; August 9, 2010)
• Meeting, and Counting, Mountain Gorillas   (New York Times; July 29, 2010)
• British researchers call for strict changes on gorilla tourism (link broken) (Rwanda News Agency; June 17, 2010)
• RDB Intensifies Gorilla Monitoring   (Rwanda New Times; May 25, 2010)
• Damian Aspinall Gorilla Reunion (link broken) (Post Chronicle; May 17, 2010)
• Gorillas suffer as eco-tourists get too close, warn researchers   (Guardian; May 16, 2010)
• iPhone app to help DR Congo mountain gorillas   (BBC News; May 17, 2010)
• Eugene Ratagarama: Rwanda’s conservation king   (CNN; May 12, 2010)
• Mountain Gorilla Census, 2010   (Rwanda New Times; May 10, 2010)
• UN peacekeepers stage great ape escape in Congo   (New Scientist; May 4, 2010)
• Snails Are Saving Endangered Gorillas (link broken) (Discovery News; April 28, 2010)
• Gorillas could vanish from Congo by 2025   (UPI; March 25, 2010)
• New hope for mountain gorillas in Congo   (Guardian; March 8, 2010)
• In search of world’s rarest and most endangered gorilla   (CNN; February 25, 2010)
• Census of Mountain Gorillas Begins Next Month   (New Times; February 10, 2010)
• Another Gorilla Group Prepared for Tourism   (New Vision; January 26, 2010)
• World Wildlife Fund lists the 10 most threatened species in 2010   (Washington Post; January 20, 2010)
• Gorillas: still wild at heart   (The Independent; December 21, 2009)
• Charcoal trade threatens gorillas   (UPI; December 12, 2009)
• A year after discovery, Congo’s ‘mother lode’ of gorillas remains vulnerable   (EurekAlert; November 23, 2009)
• Wildlife expert claims gorilla dung is critical to containing climate change   (Guardian; October 13, 2009)
• Scientists: Aggressive Poaching Could Wipe Out Gorilla Population in Areas of Congo (link broken) (Fox News; September 17, 2009)
• Uganda offers Facebook scheme to ‘befriend’ gorillas (link broken) (AFP; August 31, 2009)
• Gorillas orphaned by bushmeat trade set free on island   (Mongabay; August 10, 2009)
• Devastating death of a silverback at Mount Tshiaberimu (link broken) (The Gorilla Organization; July 15, 2009)
• The Impact of Congo Violence on Lowland Gorillas   (Scientific American; July 23, 2009)
• Wildfires threaten endangered gorilla habitat in central Africa   (Telegraph; July 20, 2009)
• Gorilla medicine (link broken) (Baltimore Sun; July 5, 2009)
• Conservationists Lobby for Gorilla Protection   (New Times, Rwanda; June 18, 2009)
• Governments at UN-backed forum issue appeal to save gorillas   (UN News Centre; June 11, 2009)
• Range extended for world’s most mysterious gorilla   (Mongabay; June 11, 2009)
• Gorilla warfare in the Congo jungle   (Telegraph; May 27, 2009)
• In the Jungle With the Gorilla Whisperer   (ABC News; May 4, 2009)
• The last mountain gorillas, and their protectors   (Christian Science Monitor; May 4, 2009)
• More than 300 gorillas butchered each year in the Republic of Congo   (Mongabay; March 27, 2009)
• Best Practice Guidelines to Reduce the Impact of Logging   (IUCN/SSC Primate Specialist Group; 2007)
• Congo park reports 10 gorillas born in 16 months (link broken) (Associated Press; January 26, 2009)
• DNA tests suggest mountain gorilla population ‘shrunk’   (Telegraph, UK; January 21, 2009)
• Gorillas In Their Midst (link broken) (The American; December 31, 2008)
• Gorilla states in poaching pledge   (BBC News; December 5, 2008)
• Rare gorilla twins born in Uganda (link broken) (AFP; December 3, 2008)
• Congo’s war – baby gorillas bring hope for endangered species (link broken) (AFP; November 30, 2008)
• UN officials launch “Year of the Gorilla” (link broken)  (Associated Press; December 1, 2008)
• Park rangers returning to gorilla refuge   (CNN; November 21, 2008)
• Congo Violence Reaches Endangered Mountain Gorillas   (New York Times; November 17, 2008)
• Guerillas threaten gorillas in Africa’s oldest national park (link broken) (AFP; November 16, 2008)
• Thousands flee fighting as Congo rebels seize gorilla park   (CNN; October 26, 2008)
• Uganda wildlife park gets new gorilla family (link broken) (AFP; October 3, 2008)
• Uganda to prepare more mountain gorillas for contact with humans (link broken) (Vancouver Sun; September 18, 2008)
• Diary: Protecting mountain gorillas   (BBC News; August 26, 2008)
• Man Suffers from 1,415 Diseases; Blames His Gorilla Meat Diet (link broken) (EcoWorldly)
• Belgian Named New Warden of Troubled Gorilla Park (link broken) (National Geographic News; August 7, 2008)
• United States to Support Mountain Gorilla Conservation   (Kigali New Times; July 15, 2008)
• More than 100,000 rare gorillas found in Congo   (CNN; August 5, 2008)
• Gorillas hand-reared in Kent returned to wild in Africa   (Telegraph; July 28, 2008)
• Fatal Attack on Conservationists’ Truck in Gorilla Park (link broken) (National Geographic News; July 11, 2008)
• Gorillas: In their midst at Volcanoes National Park (link broken) (Associated Press; July 8, 2008)
• Cameroon: Towards a new park in West (link broken) (Africa News; July 7, 2008)
• Travelers Meet Apes In the Rwandan Jungle (link broken) (ABC News; July 4, 2008)
• Gorillas: 20, Humans: $25,000   (Huffington Post; June 26, 2008)
• “Gorilla Guy” raises $30,000 for primates (link broken) (Seattle Times; June 24, 2008)
• Brent Stirton, Chronicling the Virunga Gorilla Murders   (NPR; June 24, 2008)
• Inside the Gorilla Wars: Rangers on Risking It All (link broken) (National Geographic News; June 16, 2008)
• National Geographic Channel Presents Exclusive Coverage of the Gorilla Massacre in Virunga National Park That Horrified the World (link broken) (Digital Producer Magazine; July 1, 2008)
• Gorillas in our midst (link broken) (News.com.au, Australia; May 12, 2008)
• World’s rarest gorilla gets its own forest reserve (link broken) (Mongabay; April 18, 2008)
• World’s Rarest Gorillas Gain New Refuge (link broken) (National Geographic News; April 22, 2008)
• Saving Country’s Endangered Apes From Extinction   (Kampala Monitor; April 23, 2008)
• Ebola Virus Threatens Gorilla With Extinction (link broken) (Fox News; April 17, 2008)
• Congo gorilla murder charges (link broken) (Melbourne Herald Sun; March 21, 2008)
• Rwanda’s silverback gorilla lodge (link broken) (Times Online; March 16, 2008)
• Gorilla rangers execution threat   (BBC News; March 7, 2008)
• Sigourney Weaver returns to scene of Gorillas in the Mist   (Melbourne Herald Sun; March 5, 2008)
• Three countries in pact to save mountain gorillas   (Guardian Unlimited; February 21, 2008)
• The world of mountain gorillas   (BBC News; January 25, 2008)
• Congo gorillas in the midst of a war zone   (San Francisco Chronicle; January 20, 2008)
• Rangers and gorillas of Congo sanctuary are thrust onto front lines of war   (Associated Press; January 13, 2008)
• Rwanda introduces ‘gorilla tax’   (AFP; December 24, 2007)
• Anderson Cooper: Gorillas in midst of murder   (CNN; December 14, 2007)
• Gorillas Prepare to Fly to Cameroon   (Associated Press; November 29, 2007)
• Diary: Protecting mountain gorillas   (BBC News; November 26, 2007)
• By saving gorillas, can Congolese save themselves?   (Reuters; November 5, 2007)
• Rare Gorillas at Risk as Rebels Seize Congo Park   (National Geographic News; October 11, 2007)
• More mountain gorillas for tourists   (Reuters; October 9, 2007)
• Rebels overrun gorilla hideouts   (Independent Online; October 8, 2007)
• Congo rangers break suspected gorilla traffic ring   (Reuters; September 25, 2007)
• Dian Fossey Fund Expands to Help Save Congo Mountain Gorillas   (E-Wire; September 21, 2007)
• Congo rebels seize gorilla park   (BBC News; September 4, 2007)
• Gorillas abandoned as renegade Congolese fight government in nature reserve   (Daily Mail; September 4, 2007)
• Emergency Gorilla-Protection Force Deployed in Congo (link broken) (National Geographic News; August 21, 2007)
• Mountain gorilla born in DRC (link broken) (Independent Online; August 22, 2007)
• Remains of Fifth Rare Gorilla Discovered Following Congo Attack (link broken) (Voice of America; August 20, 2007)
• Gorillas’ Safety Vital to Africa’s Tourism Market   (ABC News; August 8, 2007)
• Rare gorillas slaughtered in mass killing (link broken) (Mongabay; July 24, 2007)
• Gorillas in the fog for conservation (link broken) (San Francisco Chronicle; June 11, 2007)
• DR Congo rebel threat to gorillas   (BBC News; May 21, 2007)
• Gorillas she missed   (The Age, Australia; April 26, 2007)
• Mountain gorillas on the rise – WWF (link broken) (Independent Online; April 20, 2007)
• Rare gorillas habituated to boost tourism (link broken) (Independent Online; March 12, 2007)
• Web charity helps save Congo’s gorillas   (USA Today; March 12, 2007)
• Helping a species survive (link broken) (Cleveland News-Herald; March 8, 2007)
• Ceasefire, donations helping Congo apes (link broken) (ScienceDaily; March 5, 2007)
• Saving Gabon’s orphan gorillas   (BBC News; March 1, 2007)
• Gorillas (and chimps) in their midst (link broken) (Roanoke Times; February 2, 2007)
• Rebels agree to stop gorilla killings (link broken) (Independent Online; January 28, 2007)
• Congo rebels kill rare ape, raising survival fears (link broken) (Reuters; January 10, 2007)
• Trust’s donations save apes worldwide (link broken) (Des Moines Register; December 15, 2006)
• Gorilla conservation project takes ‘one-health’ approach (link broken) (JAVMA News; November 15, 2006)
• Road kill in Cameroon – killing of gorillas and other animals (link broken) (Natural History; February 1997)
• 2050 could mean the end for gorillas (link broken) (Independent Online; July 30, 2006)
• Greatest ape extinct within decades – UN (link broken) (Independent Online; July 17, 2006)
• Village has a gorilla economy   (San Francisco Chronicle; July 16, 2006)
• How gorillas survived a war (link broken) (Seattle Times; June 22, 2006)
• Gorilla numbers have increased (link broken) (New Vision, Uganda; June 13, 2006)
• Bwindi gorillas get babies (link broken) (New Vision, Uganda; May 31, 2006)
• Florida College Students Helping to Save Dian Fossey’s Gorillas (link broken) (eMediaWire; May 12, 2006)
• UN hails Uganda on gorillas (link broken) (New Vision, Uganda; March 21, 2006)
• Gorillas in Rwanda   (Washington Post; March 5, 2006)
• Mountain Gorilla Survival Appeal (link broken) (Australasian Primate Society)
• Congolese man protects endangered gorillas   (USA Today; November 18, 2005)
• How Cell Phones Are Killing Off Gorillas (link broken) (KFMB-TV, San Diego; November 9, 2005)
• Bush-meat traders threaten Nigeria’s chimps (link broken) (Georgia Straight, Canada; November 3, 2005)
• Founder of Eastern Congo Gorilla Reserve wins award (link broken) (Happy News.com; October 20, 2005)
• Woods Hole Research Center scientist part of international initiatives to save the great apes   (EurekAlert; October 11, 2005)
• Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International Reports Gorillas in Eastern Congo More Numerous Than Expected (link broken) (PR Newswire; September 27, 2005)
• Guerrillas threaten gorillas in volatile DRC (link broken) (Independent Online, South Africa; September 8, 2005)
• Apes ‘extinct in a generation’   (BBC News; September 1, 2005)
• Gorillas being poached for ‘bushmeat’ trade (link broken) (Independent Online, South Africa; August 31, 2005)
• Poaching, Logging Ebola Threaten Gorillas and Chimps   (Newswise; August 30, 2005)
• Conservationists seek to protect apes (link broken) (Associated Press; July 27, 2005)
• Gorilla adoption a unique marketing tool (link broken) (Independent Online, South Africa; June 28, 2005)
• DRC soldiers ‘killing gorillas’ (link broken) (News 24, South Africa; June 22, 2005)
• Satellite maps will ease plight of endangered mountain gorillas   (European Space Agency; April 8, 2005)
• Desperate plight of the great apes (link broken) (Australian Broadcasting Company; March 11, 2005)
• Expert highlights mobile phone threat to great apes   (Australian Broadcasting Company; March 10, 2005)
• Study links Ebola outbreaks to animal carcasses   (EurekAlert; February 14, 2005)
• Gorillas in Peril (link broken) (LiveScience.com; January 27, 2005)
• Rare gorillas beat the odds in DRC forests (link broken) (Independent Online, South Africa; January 28, 2005)
• Bushmeat trade threatens wildlife and humans (link broken) (Concord Monitor; January 21, 2005)
• Gorillas are missed in the DRC (link broken) (Independent Online, South Africa; December 29, 2004)
• Gorillas in the Midst of Extinction   (NASA; January 6, 2005)
• Uganda’s poor hope for more gorilla dollars   (BBC News; May 21, 2004)
• The illegal trade in gorillas   (The Economist; November 4, 2004)
• Eastern Lowland Gorilla Numbers Plunge to 5,000, Study Says (link broken) (National Geographic News; March 31, 2004)
• Aids warning over bushmeat trade   (BBC News; October 26, 2004)
• Primate Viruses Transmitted To People Through Bushmeat   (ScienceDaily; March 19, 2004)
• Learning to Track Like a Bushman   (Wired; January 22, 2004)
• The Garden Of Eden   (CBS News; February 23, 2004)
• Catastrophic loss of wild bamboo threatens pandas, mountain gorillas — UN   (UN News Centre; May 11, 2004)
• Fences ‘can help apes’ survival’   (BBC News; May 5, 2004)
• The fight to save the eastern lowland gorilla   (CNN; May 17, 2004)
• African apes being eaten into extinction (link broken) (Sunday Herald, UK; October 11, 2003)
• African `bushmeat’ trade raises health, conservation fears   (Taipei Times; August 25, 2003)
• Countries find common ground to protect world’s rarest gorilla   (EurekAlert; September 17, 2003)
• Dire Outlook for Many Primates   (BBC; May 12, 2000)
• Eating apes imperils species, spreads AIDS   (ABC Science Online, Australia; September 15, 2003)
• Extinction looms over mountain gorilla (link broken) (Independent; October 17, 2002)
• Gorilla Wild: Face-to-Face in Africa for a New TV Film (link broken) (National Geographic News; August 15, 2003)
• Gorillas in our midst (link broken) (St. Petersburg Times; November 17, 2002)
• Gorillas make home in ‘impenetrable’ forest (link broken) (National Geographic News; March 8, 2001)
• Gorillas’ friend wins global award   (BBC News; April 23, 2001)
• Great apes in peril   (BBC News; May 20, 2001)
• Growing demand for ‘bushmeat’ threatens great apes   (CNN; August 11, 1999)
• Hopes rise for mountain gorillas   (BBC News; October 17, 2002)
• Last chance to save great apes from extinction   (Guardian Unlimited; May 21, 2001)
• Massive Die-Off of Great Apes Reported in Africa (link broken) (National Geographic News; February 6, 2003)
• Orphans of the Slaughter (link broken) (Toledo Blade; December 10, 2000)
• Poaching for baby gorillas turns deadly   (CNN; November 30, 2002)
• Space Age Plan to Save Gorillas (BBC, October 3, 2001)  (BBC; October 3, 2001)

ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED IN Gorilla CONSERVATION

• African Conservation Foundation
• African Wildlife Foundation
• Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International
• International Gorilla Conservation Programme
• Jane Goodall Institute France
• Limbe Wildlife Centre
• Projet Protection des Gorilles

Cite this page as: Cawthon Lang KA. 2005 October 4. Primate Factsheets: Gorilla (Gorilla) Conservation . <http://pin.primate.wisc.edu/factsheets/entry/gorilla/cons>. Accessed 2020 July 22.

The following references were used in the writing of this factsheet. To find current references for Gorilla , search PrimateLit .

Butynski TM. 2001. Africa’s great apes. In: Beck BB, Stoinski TS, Hutchins M, Maple TL, Norton B, Rowan A, Stevens EF, Arluke A, editors. Great apes & humans: the ethics of coexistence. Washington DC: Smithsonian Inst Pr. p 3-56.

Czekala N, Robbins MM. 2001. Assessment of reproduction and stress through hormone analysis in gorillas. In: Robbins MM, Sicotte P, Stewart KJ, editors. Mountain gorillas: three decades of research at Karisoke. Cambridge (England): Cambridge Univ Pr. p 317-39.

Doran DM, McNeilage A. 1997. Gorilla ecology and behavior. Evol Anthro 6(1): 120-31.

Doran DM, McNeilage A. 2001. Subspecific variation in gorilla behavior: the influence of ecological and social factors. In: Robbins MM, Sicotte P, Stewart KJ, editors. Mountain gorillas: three decades of research at Karisoke. Cambridge (England): Cambridge University Press. p 123-49.

Doran DM, McNeilage A, Greer D, Bocian C, Mehlman P, Shah N. 2002. Western lowland gorilla diet and resource availability: new evidence, cross-site comparisons, and reflections on indirect sampling methods. Am J Primatol 58: 91-116.

Fay JM, Carroll R, Kerbis Peterhans JC, Harris D. 1995. Leopard attack on and consumption of gorillas in the Central African Republic. J Hum Evol 29(1): 93-9.

Fletcher A. 2001. Development of infant independence from the mother in wild mountain gorillas. In: Robbins MM, Sicotte P, Stewart KJ, editors. Mountain gorillas: three decades of research at Karisoke. Cambridge (England): Cambridge University Press. p 153-82.

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Top 10 facts about mountain gorillas

Discover 10 facts about the mountain gorilla, the issues they are facing, and what you can do to help.

1. Around 1,063 exist in the wild

There are two gorilla species in the world: the eastern gorilla and the western gorilla. The mountain gorilla is a subspecies of the eastern gorilla.

Mountain gorillas are endangered - there are an estimated 1,063 in the wild according to the latest census results (which come out every 5-10 years). 

2. They live in two isolated groups

M ountain gorillas live in east -central Africa in just two isolated groups – one in the Virunga Volcanoes (a region spanning 3 national parks in Uganda, Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) ) and one in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park , Uganda , which connects to Sarambwe Nature Reserve , DRC.  

They’re found in high altitude montane and bamboo forests, which are surround ed by agriculture and settlements .  

3. We share around 98% of our DNA with gorillas

This means that exposure to human illnesses – even a cold - can have potentially detrimental impacts on gorillas as they are so genetically similar to us, but they haven't developed the necessary immunities. 

Read more about our work to protect mountain gorillas

4. They’re one of the biggest, most powerful living primates

An average silverback gorilla can weigh up to 180kg (that’s almost 30 stone), and measure 170cm (over 5’5”) tall on all fours. In contrast, female mountain gorillas weigh 90kg, and measure up to 150cm (4’9”).

5. They can eat all day long

Mountain gorillas spend about a quarter of their day eating, mainly plants. Around 85% of their diet is made up of leaves, shoots and stems, but gorillas can also eat larvae, snails, ants, and even roots, barks and rotting wood (a good source of sodium/salt).

6. They cozy up at night

At night, mountain gorilla groups sleep together in nests on the ground, or in trees, that they make from foliage. Infants will share their mother’s nests, staying safe and warm.  

7. They have 16 different types of call

This includes short barks when they’re mildly alarmed or curious.  

To intimidate rivals, male gorillas strut with stiff legs, beat their chests, and use vocalisations like roars or hoots. 

8. They live in family groups

Most mountain gorillas live in stable family groups of around 10 individuals, with one dominant male and several females. Both males and females in the group care for their infants; hugging, carrying and playing with them. 

When they get older, most males and around 60% of females then leave their birth group to join another troop. This helps prevent inbreeding. 

9. In the wild, gorillas can live to over 40 years old

Gorillas are classed as infants until they reach around three-and-a-half years old, and adults from around 8 years. 

Males between 8-12 years are called 'blackbacks'. Then from 12 years old, they develop a silver section of hair over their back and hips, earning them the name 'silverback'.  

10. They’re under threat

The main threat to mountain gorillas is the degradation of their habitat. As the region’s population grows, the land is increasingly converted for agriculture and competition for limited natural resources leads to deforestation. With little other choice, people enter mountain gorilla forests to collect water and firewood, putting gorillas at risk from human contact and illnesses. People may also lay snares intended for bushmeat, which can accidentally injure the great apes. 

Gorillas don’t just stay in their forests. They venture onto farmland to eat crops like maize and bananas, which can cause conflict with people who need to make a living. 

Gorilla tourism that isn’t well managed is another potential issue, as it can impact the behaviour and health of mountain gorillas. 

We work through the International Gorilla Conservation Programme (IGCP) - a coalition between WWF, Conservation International and Fauna & Flora International. Our mission is to conserve mountain gorillas and their habitat, working with partners and local people.  

We’re helping some farmers to grow tea on the boundaries of mountain gorilla habitat as the gorillas don’t like the taste of tea, so are less likely to venture onto cropland. To deter gorillas further, we support the Human Gorilla Conflict Resolution Programme (HuGo), a group of community volunteers who can be called to redirect gorillas and other wildlife away from cropland and back into the forest.

Tourism is an important source of income for people and we’re helping to ensure that benefits are equitably shared, as well as working to minimise any negative impact of tourism on gorillas. We’re championing Gorilla Friendly ™ tourism which promotes guidelines that help minimise the risk to gorillas.    

By helping the local community to benefit from mountain gorilla conservation and the sustainable use of natural resources, we hope to increase local support for conservation efforts.   

Finally, gorilla monitoring and surveys are an important part of the work we support through IGCP. Protected Area Authority rangers regularly patrol gorilla habitats looking for signs of illegal activities and removing snares. We’re working to further strengthen this monitoring. IGCP also works with partners to undertake mountain gorilla censuses every 5-10 years, so as to monitor population size and health.   

Adopt Ihoho, a member of the Susa mountain gorilla family in Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda.

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What to Expect

What to wear, how to get a permit.

• How to Budget

Other Attractions

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• Getting There

The African continent is renowned for its once-in-a-lifetime animal encounters. Few are more memorable (or so frequently featured on traveler bucket lists) as coming face-to-face with mountain gorillas in their natural environment .

There are approximately 1,000 mountain gorillas left in the wild, divided across two distinct populations. The first lives in Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable National Park . The second, larger population lives in the Virunga Mountains, at the point where the boundaries of Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) meet. Each country has its own national park in the Virungas. Respectively, these are Volcanoes National Park, Mgahinga Gorilla National Park, and Virunga National Park. 

Of these, Rwanda's Volcanoes National Park is considered the best option for gorilla trekking. It is a safer country to visit than the DRC, with more developed infrastructure and a better choice of reliable tour operators. Meanwhile, Uganda’s Mgahinga Gorilla National Park is much smaller than its neighbors, and home to just one habituated gorilla troop. This means that there are far fewer trekking permits available, and, because the troop often moves across the border, there is a chance of missing the gorillas completely. 

Although Rwandan permits are considerably more expensive than Ugandan ($1,500 versus $700), they sell out less quickly, making it more likely that you will be able to travel on your chosen dates. Additionally, a day trip from Kigali is possible, which cuts down on extraneous costs.

From the best time to go to our favorite tours, here's what you need to know to plan your gorilla trekking adventure in Volcanoes National Park.

Volcanoes National Park has 12 gorilla troops that have been habituated for tourist encounters. Each one is made up of at least one alpha male, or silverback, and his harem of females and juveniles. Your adventure starts at the park headquarters in Kinigi at 7 a.m., when your group will be assigned to a troop and given a briefing on rules for visiting the gorillas. These rules include maintaining a distance of around 22 feet, and not hiking when sick with any contagious diseases that could infect the gorillas. Basic rules for safe interactions will also be outlined, from not using flash photography to keeping voices low and movement to a minimum. 

Your group will be the only one to interact with your allocated troop on the day of your visit. The maximum number of people in each group is eight, ensuring that the experience is kept as unobtrusive as possible for humans and gorillas alike. As nomadic creatures, gorillas spend their days on the move, foraging for the vast quantity of vegetation required to support their huge size. Because of this, it is difficult to predict exactly where each troop will be from one day to the next, although they tend to stick to a preferred general area. Much of the trekking experience consists of hiking through the misty forest to find them—a process that can take anywhere from 30 minutes to five hours or more. Generally, troops are assigned according to the fitness levels of each group and porters are available to help carry cameras and backpacks. 

Once your guide has located the troop, you will spend up to an hour sitting quietly within a few feet of them, watching as they continue to go about their daily routines unfazed by their human visitors. Encounters are strictly kept to this time limit to ensure that each troop is impacted on as little as possible. Gorillas are our closest relatives after chimpanzees and bonobos, sharing 98 percent of our DNA. As such, much of their behavior feels familiar—whether it’s a mother grooming her infant, or juveniles play fighting with one another while the adults forage for food. 

The climate in Volcanoes National Park is both cool and wet, so whenever you travel, you should be sure to dress appropriately. This means plenty of layers so that you can stay warm when sitting with the gorillas, but strip off when hiking. It also means waterproof jackets and pants, and sturdy hiking boots or shoes with sufficient grip for slippery, uphill terrain. There are plenty of stinging nettles, so thick-woven clothing and gaiters are also recommended. If you’re susceptible to sunburn, bring sunglasses, a sunhat, and sunscreen for when the sun makes an appearance in between downpours. 

With eight people permitted to visit each of Volcanoes National Park’s 12 habituated gorilla troops every day, there are only 96 permits available for any given date. This means that they sell out months in advance and getting hold of one can be quite competitive. Do not wait to book your permit until you are in Rwanda. Instead, book your permit first and then build the rest of your itinerary around it. You can purchase your permit independently through the Irembo government website ; however, the site is in Kinyarwanda and most visitors prefer to have their chosen tour operator navigate the process.

How to Budget 

Rwanda is often hailed as the world’s best destination for gorilla trekking. However, it is also the most expensive with permits costing $1,500 per person. Ten percent of this fee goes towards local community initiatives and may also be used to compensate farmers if the gorillas venture onto their land and damage their crops. This helps to keep the relationship between conservationists and residents amicable, as well as increase local support for gorilla conservation. 

In addition to the trekking permit, you will need to consider the cost of flights, accommodation, transportation, meals, tips, and optional extras. Often, the easiest way to budget is to book an all-inclusive package with a company that specializes in gorilla safaris. This way, you will know the total cost well in advance and have plenty of time to save up without worrying about unexpected expenses. Having said that, package prices vary considerably depending on the style of accommodation and other variables. Read on for our pick of the best package tours for all budgets. 

With trekking permits costing $1,500 per person, there’s no such thing as a cheap Rwandan gorilla trekking tour. However, locally owned company Katona Tours caters to budget travelers by offering an in-and-out experience that starts and ends in Kigali on the same day (eliminating the cost of accommodation in Volcanoes National Park). $1,850 per person includes transportation in a 4x4 safari vehicle, the services of an English-speaking guide and driver, your gorilla trekking permit, park entrance fees, and lunch at the local Muhabura Hotel. 

For a more immersive experience, consider extending your stay in Volcanoes National Park with this four-day itinerary from Intrepid Travel . It also begins and ends in Kigali, starting with a tour of the Kigali Genocide Memorial. Then, you’ll sleep overnight at a lodge on the outskirts of the national park before heading out on your gorilla trekking adventure the following day. The third day is reserved for other park activities, including visiting the Karisoke Research Center and tracking golden monkeys. On the last day, you'll head back to Kigali for a walking tour of the city. $4,835 includes transportation, accommodation, most meals, your trekking permit, and both activities in Kigali. 

South Africa-based luxury travel company andBeyond offers luxury gorilla trekking packages starting from $5,504 per person. Lasting five days and four nights, the tour starts and ends in Kigali and includes one day dedicated to tracking the gorillas and a second reserved for tracking golden monkeys (at an additional cost). Accommodation is included and involves stays at the luxurious Kigali Serena Hotel and Virunga Lodge. Also covered are your airport meet-and-greet, gorilla permits, most meals, soft and alcoholic drinks, scheduled transfers (including the exclusive use of a luxury vehicle), a nature walk, and a complimentary post-hike massage. 

Although gorillas are top of the wish list for most visitors, a hike through Volcanoes National Park also yields an opportunity to spot many other interesting species. These include endangered golden monkeys (of which there are two habituated troops), forest elephants, black-fronted duikers, buffaloes, forest hogs, and more than 200 bird species. Many of the park’s birds are endemic to the Albertine Rift, making them especially sought-after by keen birders. 

Also of interest is Karisoke Research Center , where legendary primatologist Dian Fossey began her 18-year research project on mountain gorillas in 1967. It’s also where she wrote her seminal book, "Gorillas in the Mist," made many discoveries about gorilla behavior that continue to form our understanding of the species today, and was eventually murdered in 1985. Today, visitors can tour the research center to learn more about the valuable work being carried out by resident scientists, as well as conservation initiatives put in place to ensure the future of the park’s gorillas. It is also possible to hike to Dian Fossey’s grave. 

Due to its proximity to the equator and its high elevation, temperatures in Volcanoes National Park stay consistently cool throughout the year. Expect average daytime temperatures of around 61 degrees F, and chilly nights that can drop as low as 43 degrees F. Rain and mist are also ever-present, although less so in the drier months from June to August. Lighter rainfall at this time of year makes it the best time to visit for gorilla trekking since the terrain is easier to navigate and the gorillas themselves are often more active. October, March, and April are the wettest months and are typically best avoided.

Getting There 

For most international visitors, the main port of entry to Rwanda is Kigali International Airport (KGL), located roughly 6 miles east of the Rwandan capital. From there, it’s just over 70 miles and a little under three hours by road to Musanze, the park’s closest town. Then, it’s another 30-minute drive to the park headquarters at Kinigi, from where all gorilla trekking tours depart. Most visitors either hire a car and driver to get to Volcanoes National Park or choose an organized tour with transfers included.  

Tourist visas are required for most nationalities and can be purchased on arrival at Kigali International Airport or any land border. You can opt for a single entry tourist visa (priced at $50 and valid for 30 days), or the East African Tourist Visa, which costs $100 but lasts for 90 days and permits entry into Rwanda, Uganda, and Kenya.  

Before traveling to Rwanda, remember that the CDC recommends a variety of vaccinations, including hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and rabies . Proof of yellow fever vaccination is an entry requirement if you are traveling from any country where this disease is prevalent. Additionally, malaria medication is recommended for travel throughout Rwanda. Be sure to book a consultation with your physician to discuss which option is best for you.

World Wildlife Fund. "Wild mountain gorilla numbers grow to more than 1,000." Retrieved on December 6, 2021.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Rwanda." Retrieved on December 6, 2021.

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How many miles do you walk to see gorillas, the distance walked during gorilla trekking can take up to more than 9 miles which is approximately 3 hours to find the gorillas, this means you will spend approximately 6 hours each way. You will set off for the gorilla trek at 8am and be back by 3pm. However kindly note this is for the normal trek, gorilla trekking sometimes can take the whole day it all depends on the nature that day and the movement of the gorillas on the forest.

Gorilla trekking in Bwindi Forest timings and conditions vary tremendously as the gorillas move continuously through the rain forest this also determines how many miles the gorilla trek will be that day of your trek. It is good to be prepared and remember the weather can change with very little warning. The terrain is often steep and through areas where there are no marked paths. It can be very strenuous it may be just a couple of hours but it can also be for a full day of up to 8 hours or more of hiking in hot, high altitude conditions therefore please be prepared for this by being as fit as possible.

About gorilla trekking Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park

Bwindi Impenetrable Forest is one of the only 4 national parks home to the endangered mountain gorillas in the world, other national parks include Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in Uganda, Volcanoes national park in Rwanda and Virunga National Park in DR Congo. Bwindi Forest National Park is one of Africa’s oldest forests with a diverse biodiversity with various species which include 350 birds, 310 butterflies, 200 trees, 51 reptiles, 88 moths and 120 mammals, the park is also home to several primates including chimpanzees, L’Hoest’s monkey and the major one the Mountain Gorillas. The global population of mountain gorillas is 1064 individuals and half of these can be found in Bwindi forest, the park has over 15 habituated gorilla family groups open for gorilla tracking with 8 gorilla permits allocated to each group per day.

How to get to get to Bwindi Forest for Gorilla Trekking

How far is Bwindi by Road; This will depend on which sector you will be doing your gorilla trek in Bwindi Forest ; Bwindi can be accessed through the main high-way road from Entebbe/Kampala which is approximately 8-9 hours drive. The northern sectors of Ruhija and Buhoma can be accessed by turning off along the Kabale-Kisoro road you will see the signposted of Uganda Wildlife Authority which you will follow up to the designated sector for your trek. The southern sectors of Rushaga and Nkuringo trailheads can be reached using the road turning off at Muko along Kabale-Kisoro Highway.

How far is Bwindi by Air; You can fly from Entebbe International Airport or Kampala’s Kajjansi airfield to Kisoro airstrip to access the southern sectors of Rushaga and Nkuringo and then to Kihihi airstrip for the northern sectors of Ruhija and Buhoma. Scheduled and chartered flights are available and operated by domestic airline operators of Aero link and Fly Uganda. You will need to plan with your tour operator for a transfer from the airstrip to the Lodge you are booked for your stay.

Where is Gorilla Trekking done in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park?

Gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is done in 4 sectors which include Buhoma, Ruhija, Nkuringo and Rushaga. Buhoma sector is located in the northern part of Bwindi and Ruhija sector in the North Eastern part of Bwindi both sectors are located close to Queen Elizabeth National Park making it easy to combine gorilla trekking with game viewing if you are trekking at these sectors. In the southern Part of Bwindi it is where Rushaga and Nkuringo sectors are located close to Mgahinga Gorilla National Park for gorilla trekking and Golden monkey tracking. Each sector has different habituated mountain gorilla families open for gorilla trekking with Rushaga sector having many families compared to other sectors.

How much is Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park

About Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. A Gorilla Permit costs USD700 per person per trek for Foreign Non-Residents, USD600 for East African Residents and USD70 for East African Citizens. This Gorilla permit gives you an opportunity to spend one-hour encounter with mountain gorillas in Bwindi forest once you find them on your trek.

Where is Gorilla Habituation Experience done in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park?

Gorilla Habituation in Bwindi forest is done in the southern part of Bwindi at Rushaga sector and areas between Rushaga and Nkuringo sectors. With this if you are interested in doing Gorilla habituation experience in Bwindi you are required to stay in lodges in the south at either Nkuringo or Rushaga. Gorilla habituation experience involves walking/hiking through Bwindi forest to search for semi habituated mountain gorillas and once you find them you will spend 4 hours encounter with them as you participate in activities geared to make these mountain gorillas get used to human presence so that they can be trekked normally after a given period of time. Gorilla habituation experience gives you an opportunity to spend more hours with mountain gorillas that is 4 hours compared to one hour during normal tracking. Gorilla habituation is always on high demand given they are only 4 permits available per day and tracking is only done by 4 people per day so it is recommended you book your permit atleast 2-3 months in advance. A Gorilla Habituation permit costs USD1500 per person per trek for Non foreign residents, USD1000 for Foreign Residents and USD220 for East African Citizens. How many miles do you walk to see the gorillas

What is the difference between Gorilla Trekking and Gorilla Habituation Experience in Bwindi?

How many miles do you walk to see gorillas. The major difference is during Gorilla trekking you spend one-hour encounter with the mountain Gorillas once you find them in Bwindi forest whereas for Gorilla habitation experience you spend 4 hours encounter with mountain gorillas in Bwindi forest, gorilla trekking is done in a group of 8 tourists tracking per gorilla family whereas gorilla habitation is done in a group of 4 tourists tracking a given semi habituated gorilla family. Both activities are done in Bwindi Forest national park and both start in the morning hours you are required to be fit to be able to participate in one of the activity given the fact some time they tend to be strenuous especially when you are hiking through Bwindi Forest.

What is the best time to go Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi Forest?

The best time to do a gorilla trekking in Bwindi forest is during the drier months of January, February, June to early September, this is makes it easier to travel to the park and gives a clear view of gorillas given the vegetation cover is not too much high grown

What to pack for Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi Forest?

During gorilla tracking you will need a comfortable, hard wearing, pair of walking shoes or boots.  Conditions are generally very muddy when it is raining. There are uphill sections which may be quite steep and strenuous.  It is also advisable to wear a long sleeve cotton shirt and lightweight long trousers to protect yourself from the undergrowth, stinging nettles and biting ants.  Suggested Items to pack for Gorilla trekking in Bwindi include;

•          Insect Repellent                      

•          Torch/Flashlight – and Spare Batteries

•          Wet Wipes                             

•          Water Bottle                             

•          Camera, lenses etc

•          Comfortable walking/hiking boots & socks  

•          Gardening gloves for gorilla tracking

•          Sandals/strops/walking shoes    

•          Hat and Sunscreen

•          Rain Jacket

•          Sweater/fleece

•          Swimwear

•          Binoculars (game/bird watching)

Where to stay during Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi Forest

Gorilla trekking in Bwindi Forest National Park is done in the northern part that is Buhoma and Ruhija and in southern part that is Rushaga and Nkuringo sectors. In Rushaga lodges, you can stay at Rushaga Gorilla camp, Four Gorillas Lodge, Rushaga Gorilla Havens Lodge, Nsongi Camp, Icumbi Gorilla Safari Lodge, Gorilla Safari Lodge, Gorilla Valley Lodge and Karungi Camp. In Nkuringo lodges you can stay at Nkuringo Bwindi gorilla lodge, Clouds Mountain gorilla lodge or Lake Mutanda Resort, all these lodges are close to the start point of Gorilla Habituation and Gorilla trekking.

In the northern part, in Buhoma sector you can stay at Buhoma Lodge, Bwindi Lodge, Buhoma Community Rest Camp, Ride 4 a Woman among others, In Ruhija you can stay at Trekkers Tavern Cottages, Agandi Eco Lodge, Gift of Nature Lodge, Ruhija Gorilla Safari Lodge, and Broadbill Tented Camp among others.

Which sector is best for Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi Forest?

How many miles do you walk to see the gorillas, Many tour operators and tourists choose Rushaga sector as the best sector for gorilla tracking in Bwindi because of the many habituated gorilla families here it is easy to get the gorilla tracking permit here compared to other sectors, however according to the nature/elevation Buhoma is the best sector for gorilla trekking given the fact sometime you can only spend 3-4 hours on your trek and some trackers are already done by 11am in the morning. Among all the sectors it is Nkuringo sector that has a higher elevation making the treks strenuous. For gorilla trekking in Bwindi forest which ever sector you are booked for your trek you will be able to see the mountain gorillas and you have 99% chances of seeing them on your trek given the fact this is a very well organized activity. 

Why Book with Eco Adventure Safaris your Gorilla Trekking in Bwindi

Eco Adventure Safaris will help you book your gorilla trekking permits trekking in Bwindi Forest contact us and we advise you on the booking process. We as well have different gorilla trekking safari packages ranging from budget, mid-range to luxury options that we can book for you including the gorilla permits. Feel free to check out our trip advisor reviews and read from a community of happy satisfied clients. With us, you can be rest assured of a memorable Uganda safari holiday. We are devoted to providing excellent service and customer satisfaction. Our team of excellent tour consultants is always willing to help answer all your safari questions. We guarantee you a great gorilla tour in Uganda, Rwanda and DR Congo with us. Contact us here for more information about How many miles do you walk to see gorillas

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I Explored Rwanda's Hidden Gems With My Family — Here's Why You Should, Too

An inside look at the culture of Rwanda, why gorilla trekking will take your breath away, and how to plan your trip.

Courtesy of One&Only

The battle-worn hippo trotted into the acacia trees, surprisingly light on its feet. Not exactly one of the dancers from Fantasia , but even with layers of scar tissue covering its side, the creature embodied grace and resilience in the bush. 

Less than 24 hours into our stay at Rwanda’s Akagera National Park — a swath of savanna, swamps, and lakes some 100 miles east of the capital, Kigali — my family and I had already become accustomed to the hippos. Scores of them dotted the surface of Lake Rwanyakazinga, home to Wilderness Magashi , an eight-suite, solar-powered tented camp on the shore. At night, though I was snug with hot-water bottles in our king-size bed, their harrumphs kept me awake — an insomniac’s dream. 

Courtesy of Wilderness Safaris

But seeing this solitary hippo on the move, on land, gave us all a sense of the animals’ true size and speed. “When hippos fight, they use their teeth like spears,” explained our soft-spoken Rwandan guide, Herman Nkusi, who, on a later game drive, found two incisors lying in a small grove. My son, Bobby, lifted one up and down like a barbell, the tooth nearly as long as his arm.

After the 1994 genocide — in which an estimated 800,000 Rwandans were murdered over a 100-day period — Akagera’s size was greatly reduced, as land was reallocated. Poaching was left unchecked, meaning much of its native wildlife was also lost. In 2010, the Rwanda Development Board and African Parks, a conservation nonprofit, joined forces to rehabilitate the reserve, which now covers 433 square miles. In 2015, lions were reintroduced, followed by rhinos in 2017. It is now possible to see the Big Five in Akagera, putting it in select company with such destinations as Kruger National Park in South Africa and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area in Tanzania. One evening at sundown, we happened upon a female rhino and her six-month-old calf, their precious horns bobbing up and down as they grazed for dinner. No other vehicles were around us.

The evolution of Akagera, like tourism in Rwanda overall, has been slow, deliberate, and remarkable, given the circumstances. Wilderness Magashi opened in May 2019; Magashi Peninsula, a four-suite companion property, is in development. Though we saw no other children during our stay, the camp felt very accommodating to families, with a small dipping pool and a nurturing staff. Nkusi, whose wife was expecting their first child, offered up his copilot seat and walkie-talkie to Bobby each afternoon — the quickest way to an eight-year-old boy’s heart.

Multigenerational travel, which has exploded post-COVID in tried-and-true safari destinations like Kenya and South Africa, is still nascent in Rwanda, in part because the minimum age for gorilla trekking in Volcanoes National Park is 15. But we discovered that going a little deeper, beyond the destination's most famous activity, leads to some remarkable experiences, for all ages.

“We’ve raised three biological and three adopted children here, and found so many family-friendly activities beyond the gorillas,” said Alissa Ruxin, who, along with her husband, Josh, owns the Retreat by Heaven , a 20-room luxury hotel in Kigali’s central Kiyovu district. It is a divine, welcoming place to recharge after a long flight: Bobby gravitated to the shaded pool and the chessboard with gorilla pieces in the open-air reception area — an invitation to play, if ever there was one.

Luis Tato/AFP/Getty Images

Ruxin suggested biking in the new Nyandungu Urban Wetland Eco-Tourism Park or ziplining at the Fazenda Sengha recreation center on Mount Kigali as day excursions. But our adventures took a more sartorial turn. Bobby, who loves dressing up, had a beaded bracelet custom-sized at Moshions , a gender-neutral Kigali boutique run by the energetic, supremely stylish Moses Turahirwa, who ran upstairs to their workshop to get the fit just so. Moshions is one of several emerging brands — others include K’tsobe, a brass jewelry brand by Sarah Legrand, and Asantii, a contemporary women’s line founded by Maryse Mbonyumutwa — with stores and ateliers open to visitors, making fashion here accessible and welcoming. 

Through her larger enterprise, Pink Mango, Mbonyumutwa employs around 1,000 people (80 percent of them are women) to produce clothing for not only Asantii but also other global brands, white-label. One morning, she led us around two of her airplane-hangar-esque factories in Kigali’s “Special Economic Zone,” an industrial area 30 minutes from the city center. “We’ve got a training section for embroidery here, and then we also work with cooperatives of women in rural areas,” she said as a nearby employee finished work on a white Asantii blouse. 

At one factory, we toured a daycare and kindergarten run by Pink Ubuntu — Pink Mango’s social-impact arm — which opened in 2021 to support the children of female employees. Bobby told Mbonyumutwa about the similarities to his former school back home (the cots for nap time, ABCs written on the wall). As we left, I noticed block letters running above the cubbyholes. They spelled out "Amazing Things Happen When You Try."

Courtesy of The Legacy Untold

“Are we sure this is a good idea?”

My husband, Rob, was wondering why Bobby was leading the charge at the Canopy Walkway: a gently swaying suspension bridge 230 feet up in the treetops of Nyungwe National Park. Kids as young as six are permitted to cross the 525-foot-long structure, one of the park’s marquee attractions, along with some 310 bird species, hiking trails, waterfalls, and chimpanzee treks. In September 2023, Nyungwe, which spans 252,000 acres of forest in Rwanda’s southwestern corner, was named a UNESCO World Heritage site — the country’s first.

After descending 45 minutes down the Igishigishigi trail — the path all travelers must follow, accompanied, to the walkway and back — Bobby was determined to be the first one to cross the bridge. And truth be told, I didn’t want to go first. “Baby steps!” I shouted to him as we all made the crossing, sending up a prayer that an afternoon shower wouldn’t appear, as sometimes happens in November, which is rainy season. 

Rivulets of sweat poured off my palms. “We did it! ” I exclaimed as I grabbed Rob and Bobby’s hands on the other side. Unlike mine, theirs were as cool as cucumbers. 

Courtesy of One&Only

Coming off that adrenaline rush, we collapsed in our plush, earth-toned suite at the 22-room One&Only Nyungwe House , a cluster of wooden villas and a main house with soaring ceilings and a grand fireplace, in the middle of a heart-stoppingly beautiful tea plantation. Our time there was short, but sweet: Rob and I rose at 4:30 a.m. to go on a five-hour chimp-trekking excursion (grueling, definitely not for the kids) while Bobby took a cooking and painting class in the lobby, with the fields outside for inspiration. Later on, we all gathered with women from the Nyungwe Cultural Village cooperative , who harvest tea for a living. They taught us how to sort the thick, healthy green leaves into giant baskets strapped onto our backs. When nature is at your fingertips, a kids’ club is superfluous. 

“You have to mimic the sound that you are hearing,” explained Kadiara King’ai, manager of guest services at the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund. We were touring the fund’s state-of-the-art Ellen DeGeneres Campus , inaugurated in 2022 on the outskirts of Volcanoes National Park, a 62-square-mile patch of rain forest in Rwanda’s northwest. Designed using local volcanic stone, the contemporary campus is part research and education center, part interactive museum — and a brilliant place for children to engage with conservation. 

Bobby was at the “gorilla chat” display, where you can learn how the animals communicate. After listening to recordings of them laughing, crying, singing, and beating their chests, we each took our turn, breaking down our inhibitions by trying to copy them. We wandered into a recreation of Dian Fossey’s cabin, which displays some of the legendary primatologist’s personal effects, as well as a model of a mountain gorilla skeleton next to a human one. King’ai even took us to a separate lab, where research is still being done on the thousand or so mountain gorillas left in their wild, to show us brown paper bags filled with their frozen poop, which reveal many tidbits of biological information — including whether or not the animals are stressed.

Courtesy of Singita

After hours of learning about them at the campus, telling Bobby that he wouldn’t be able to see the gorillas up close was not an easy conversation. The displays profiling Digit, one of Dian Fossey’s favorites, had made quite an impression. But I gently explained that there would be plenty of other things for him to do at each of our hotels — archery and a drumming lesson at One&Only Gorilla’s Nest , which also happens to have a spectacular infinity pool — as well as games, coloring, and endless croissants at Singita Kwitonda Lodge , both of which are within 15 minutes or so of the park. It was time for Dad and me to be alone, for a bit.

Gorilla trekking can be an all-day affair; visitors are each assigned a family group on the morning of the trek, and go where they go. I wasn’t prepared for some of the hiking hazards: the mud, the fire ants, the stinging nettles. But once we reached the Hirwa group — a family of 17 with a rare set of rambunctious male twins — my adrenaline kicked in. Due to park rules, we had only an hour in their presence. It was go time. 

Ross Couper/Courtesy of Singita

One of the twins reached into the ground, then pulled out a handful of ants and licked his fingers clean. Two juveniles spun in circles around a bamboo tree as the silverback came over to supervise. I noticed one smaller, slower gorilla taking cover from the rain in the underbrush, its rheumy eyes displaying a world-weariness that the younger, more nimble animals didn’t seem to have. Turns out, she was Kibyeyi: at 49, one of the oldest female gorillas in the park. I made sure to tell Bobby all about her when I got back. 

How to Book a Trip to Rwanda

Mark Lakin, founder and CEO of the Legacy Untold , is a safari specialist and member of T+L’s Travel Advisory Board. Lakin and his team can plan a multi-stop itinerary, arrange car and helicopter transfers, meals, meet-and-greets with designers, and trekking excursions. 

Related Articles

Gorilla Speed: How Fast Can Gorilla Run? Can We Outrun It?

Gorillas, those majestic ground-dwelling apes, exhibit a predominantly herbivorous lifestyle within the lush realms of middle forests. These primates, characterized by their impressive physical strength and contemplative demeanor, navigate the intricate tapestry of their habitat with a grace that belies their size. A mesmerizing sight unfolds as one delves into the intricacies of their existence, forging an unspoken connection between the observer and these enigmatic creatures. This article will discuss how fast can a gorilla run.

The Colorful Tapestry of Lowland Gorillas

The lowland gorilla, a species dwelling in the western regions, graces the landscape with its diverse palette of hues. Individuals of this subspecies may boast striking reddish-brown or subdued gray fur, adding a layer of visual richness to the verdant surroundings they call home. It is amidst this chromatic variety that the essence of their existence unfolds, creating a visual symphony that captivates the onlooker and stimulates curiosity about the nuances of their habitat and social structure.

Nurturing Bonds and Reproductive Cycles

Beyond their outward appearance, gorillas weave intricate social bonds that underscore their familial structure. A fascinating aspect of their reproductive cycle is the swift transition from weaning to pregnancy among females. Once their offspring are weaned, a remarkable phenomenon ensues, where females, in a testament to the resilience of life, promptly resume ovulation and embark on the journey of motherhood once again. This cyclical dance of life highlights the innate strength and adaptability of these intelligent beings, revealing a narrative of continuity that spans generations.

The Intriguing World of Gorilla Play

Amid the dense forests that shelter these awe-inspiring creatures, an unexpected element emerges – the presence of play. Gorillas engage in a variety of playful activities, transcending the stereotypical image of stoic apes. These moments of levity not only serve as a means of physical exercise but also provide a glimpse into the complexity of their social dynamics. The juxtaposition of robust strength and playful exuberance paints a nuanced portrait of gorillas, challenging preconceived notions and beckoning explorers to delve deeper into the multifaceted nature of their existence.

Gorilla’s Formidable Speed

The majestic gorilla, an emblem of strength and power, possesses a surprising burst of speed. Clocking in at an impressive 20 miles per hour, the gorilla’s velocity in motion is truly awe-inspiring. To put this into perspective, consider the legendary sprinter Usain Bolt, whose record-setting 100-meter dash translates to a remarkable 23 miles per hour. Notably, Bolt’s peak speed outpaces that of the gorilla, reaching an astonishing 27 miles per hour.

Man versus Gorilla: A Contest of Speed

The intriguing question arises: Can a human outrun a gorilla? The Quora community offers a straightforward response: yes. Delving deeper, we find that the fastest speed ever achieved by a human in a life-or-death scenario stands at 28 miles per hour. Surprisingly, this narrowly surpasses the top speed of a Silverback Gorilla, which caps at 25 miles per hour. Thus, in a race against the clock, humanity edges out the formidable gorilla.

Unleashing Gorilla Power

Beyond mere speed, the raw power of a gorilla is truly formidable when juxtaposed with human capabilities. Astonishingly, adult gorillas exhibit a strength that is four to nine times greater than that of an average human. The Guinness Book of Records further attests to this prowess, citing that a Silverback Gorilla can effortlessly hoist a staggering 815 kilograms (1800 pounds) of weight. This unparalleled strength showcases the primal might embedded in the sinewy frame of these magnificent creatures.

Unraveling Gorilla Behavior

To truly understand the essence of gorillas, one must delve into the intricacies of their behavior. These creatures, known for their expressive nature, can vocalize with resounding roars and communicate through rhythmic pounding. When agitated or curious, gorillas may display a range of actions, from leaping to the ground with commanding force to striking objects, such as a rag, with surprising dexterity. Inquisitive gorillas may even exhibit playful behavior by grabbing or tugging at clothing, revealing a complex and nuanced social dynamic.

A Prudent Approach: Interacting with Gorillas

When in the presence of these majestic beings, a key piece of advice resonates – stay calm and don’t react. The enigmatic world of gorilla interactions requires a measured demeanor. Whether faced with their vocalizations or engaging in proximity, maintaining composure is paramount. A stark contrast to the primal intensity of their strength and speed, a tranquil approach ensures a harmonious coexistence, offering a glimpse into the captivating world of these extraordinary creatures.

Facing Guerrillas: A Bold Encounter

In the face of formidable guerrillas, only the boldest of daredevils would venture to shout in their presence, signaling a challenge to the untamed forces of the wild. This audacious act not only demands courage but sets the stage for a unique interaction with these powerful creatures, creating a connection between the human spirit and the untamed world.

The Art of Pacification: A Delicate Balance

To pacify a gorilla is to navigate the delicate dance of dominance and submission. Guerrillas, formidable beings with an inherent disdain for direct eye contact, require a nuanced approach. Engaging in a subtle game of averted gaze, one must tread carefully, acknowledging the primal instinct that lies behind the gorilla’s aversion to staring directly into human eyes.

The Subtle Stance: Crouch and Conquer

In the presence of a gorilla, the key to success lies in the art of physical submissiveness. Crouching and minimizing one’s stature becomes a paramount strategy to convey a lack of challenge. The imperative is to make oneself smaller, to downplay any semblance of threat, thus navigating the complex terrain of gorilla social hierarchies with finesse.

Understanding Gorilla Authority: A Delicate Balance of Power

Guerrillas, inherently cautious creatures, are known to fear challenging their authority. This intricate power dynamic necessitates a careful interpretation of their body language and behavioral cues. The human intruder must delicately navigate this unspoken hierarchy, ensuring that every move communicates deference rather than confrontation.

Dealing with Aggression: A Surrender to Survival

In the event of an aggressive encounter with a gorilla, survival demands a counterintuitive approach. While it may seem instinctive to resist or fight back, such actions can escalate the threat. An attack from a gorilla may involve severe bites or playful yet forceful interactions with their powerful hands. In the face of apparent danger, maintaining a passive stance becomes imperative, as active resistance can be misconstrued as a direct threat, triggering a more intense and potentially dangerous response from these majestic creatures.

Establishing Connections through Grooming

In the unlikely scenario where a mighty gorilla finds itself near you, gripping you with an intimidating force, an unconventional tactic to explore is initiating a form of non-verbal communication known as “grooming.” This peculiar method involves delicately caressing the gorilla’s arm, strategically timed to coincide with the resonating sounds that possess the potential to rupture your lips. It is in the subtle strokes and nuanced movements that one may discover the ability to divert the gorilla’s attention in an unyielding and irresistible manner.

Navigating a Delicate Release

As the vise-like grip of the gorilla gradually relinquishes its hold, a strategic and measured approach becomes paramount. With utmost care, you begin to elevate your hand toward the massive paw of the gorilla, feigning a profound interest in the minuscule details of the environment, be it a verdant leaf or a speck of earth lying in the creature’s immediate vicinity. This deliberate engagement with the surroundings serves as a subtle distraction, a calculated maneuver to navigate the thin line between freedom and continued restraint.

The Art of Silence and Patience

In moments of intense proximity to a formidable primate, maintaining a serene demeanor is imperative. A strategic choice unfolds as you choose to embrace silence and passivity, allowing the gorilla to either lose interest naturally or await the intervention of external assistance. The ability to remain composed amidst potential chaos underscores the delicate dance between humans and primates, highlighting the nuanced balance required to navigate such unforeseen encounters with grace and tact. Pet accessories on Amazon

Adapting to the Gorilla’s Dominance

If the gorilla’s powerful arms encircle you, a critical shift in strategy is warranted. Contrary to instinctual urges, attempting to forcibly extricate yourself from the gorilla’s grasp is ill-advised. The sheer strength of the gorilla surpasses that of a fully grown man, rendering such attempts futile. Instead, a more prudent course of action involves acknowledging and adapting to the gorilla’s dominance, refraining from actions that might be interpreted as confrontational. Understanding the dynamics of power and hierarchy in this primal encounter is pivotal to averting potential complications and maintaining a semblance of equilibrium.

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How many Miles do you walk to see the Gorillas?

• Gorilla Holidays
• Gorilla Tracking
• Gorilla trekking

The distance walked during a gorilla trek can take up to more than 9 miles which is approximately 3 hours to find the gorillas, this means you will spend approximately 6 hours each way. A gorilla trek takes between 1 to 6 hours on average. This depends on the time the trackers last saw the gorillas and where. This time includes right from the start of the trekking point, then watching the gorillas and returning to the meeting point of the National Park. You will set off for the gorilla trek at 8 a.m. and be back by 3 p.m. However kindly note this is for the normal trek, gorilla trekking sometimes can take the whole day. It greatly depends on nature that day and the movement of the gorillas in the forest. Gorilla trekking in the dense Bwindi Forest timings and conditions vary tremendously as the gorillas move continuously through the rain forest.  This also determines how many miles the gorilla trek will be that day of your trek. It is good for you to prepare early and remember the weather changes with very little warning. The terrain is often steep and through areas where there are no marked paths. It can be strenuous, and it may be just a couple of hours but it can also be for a full day of up to 8 hours or more of hiking in hot, high-altitude conditions. Therefore please be prepared for this by being as fit as possible.

About gorilla trekking Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park

Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is one of the only 4 national parks home to the endangered mountain gorillas in the world, other national parks include Mgahinga Gorilla National Park in Uganda, Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda and Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is one of Africa’s oldest forests with a diverse biodiversity with various species which include 350 birds, 310 butterflies, 200 trees, 51 reptiles, 88 months, and 120 mammals, the park is also home to several primates including chimpanzees, L’Hoest’s monkey and the major one which is the magnificent Mountain Gorillas. The global population of mountain gorillas is 1064 individuals and half of these are in the Bwindi forest. The park has over 20 habituated gorilla family groups open for gorilla tracking with 8 gorilla permits allocated to each group per day.

How to prepare for Gorilla Trekking physically

It is very important to prepare physically before going on a hike. This means having the proper equipment as well as being in good shape. Here are some tips on how to prepare yourself for a hike: Get the right equipment. Make sure you have the proper clothing and footwear for the conditions you will be hiking in. You will also need a backpack, water, and snacks. Be in good physical shape. Hiking can be strenuous so it is important to be in a good physical condition before attempting a hike. Start by doing some basic exercises such as walking or jogging to get your body used to the activity. Know your limits. Don’t attempt a hike that is beyond your abilities. If you are not sure, start with an easier hike and work your way up to something more challenging. Understand and listen to your body. If you start to feel tired or sore, take a break. It is important to rest and drink plenty of fluids when hiking. Prepare for emergencies. Make sure you know how to find help if you need it and always carry a first aid kit.

The terrain levels.

You must get a sense of the terrain you’ll be covering on your trek by reading through your trip notes. You can also prepare for the conditions you’re likely to encounter by doing some Practice walks that simulate the conditions as closely as possible. In addition, don’t forget that hills can be your friend! The more you practice walking uphill, the easier it will be when you encounter them on your actual trek. If the difficulty of the terrain worries you, it’s best to go trekking in the dry season, which runs from June to September and December to February. The ground can become very muddy during the wet season, making it more difficult to walk. However, photographers should note that rain clears away the dust in the air, resulting in sharper images.

Things that one can do to keep fit before Gorilla Trekking

Increase the Intensity of Workouts. The recommendation is that you gradually increase the intensity and duration of your trekking and hiking workouts as you get closer to your hike date. This will help to avoid injuries and ensure that you have physically got ready to go for the trail. Increase Cardiovascular Activities. Cardiovascular activities such as running, cycling, or swimming are great for improving your overall fitness levels. Strength training exercises such as sit-ups, push-ups, and weightlifting will help to build up your muscle strength. Stretching exercises such as yoga or Pilates can improve your flexibility, which can be helpful when trekking and hiking. Choose Simpler Treks If Possible. There are also many different trekking and hiking trails in Uganda and Rwanda targeting gorilla trekking. So there sure is one that is right for your fitness level. No matter what your fitness level is, trekking and hiking are great ways to get some exercise and fresh air. So get out there and explore the world! By following these tips, you can prepare yourself for a safe and enjoyable hike or trek.

How many Miles do you walk to see the Gorillas – Am I Fit Enough For Gorilla Trekking?

If you are reasonably fit, then you should have no problem tackling most gorilla trekking and hiking trails. However, if you are not used to exercising regularly, then you may want to build up your fitness levels before attempting any long or difficult trails. If you are very fit, then you will be able to tackle almost any trekking or hiking trail. However, it is always a good idea to research the trail before you attempt it, to make sure that it is within your abilities. No matter what your fitness level is, trekking and hiking are great ways to get some exercise and fresh air. So get out there and explore the world.

Where is Gorilla Trekking done in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park?

Gorilla trekking in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park is in 4 sectors which include Buhoma, Ruhija, Nkuringo, and Rushaga. Buhoma sector is located in the northern part of Bwindi and the Ruhija sector is in the North Eastern part of Bwindi, both sectors are located close to Queen Elizabeth National Park  making it easy to combine gorilla trekking with game viewing if you are trekking at these sectors. In the southern part of Bwindi, it is where Rushaga and Nkuringo sectors are located close to Mgahinga Gorilla National Park for gorilla trekking and Golden monkey tracking. Each sector has different mountain gorilla families which the researchers habituated and open for gorilla trekking with the Rushaga sector having many families compared to other sectors.

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