Characteristics


 * Physical Description****-Anatomy**

Western lowland gorillas (//G. g. gorilla//) have brownish-gray coats, unlike the often blackish coats of the mountain (//G. b. beringei//) and eastern lowland (//G. b. graueri//) gorillas. Some males can have silver-tipped hairs on their shoulders and back and are called silverbacks. The young males at Milwaukee Zoo have these silver charactericts. When talking to a zoo volunteer (7/29/08) she said the silver characteristics occur at about the age of 16. Cassius has reached silverback status.

Western lowland gorillas have a more pronounced brow ridge, and ears that appear small in relation to their heads. They also have a different shaped nose and lip. Adult male gorillas’ heads look conical due to the large bony crests on the top (sagittal) and back (nuchal) 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.

The western lowland gorilla has a wider and larger skull and the big toe of the western lowland gorilla is spread apart more from the alignment of his other four toes.

Like all great apes, gorillas’ arms are longer than their legs. When they move quadrupedally, they knuckle-walk, supporting their weight on the third and fourth digits of their curled hands. Like other primates each individual has distinctive fingerprints. Lowland gorilla hair is short, soft, and very fine. There is no under fur (a thick layer of insulating hair close to the skin, such as on dogs or minks). Lowland gorillas’ coats are suited for warm, moist forest habitats. Mountain gorillas are more shaggy and thick-furred due to the colder temperatures at high altitudes.

Gorillas are primarily herbivorous, eating the leaves and stems of herbs, shrubs, and vines. In some areas, they raid farms, eating and trampling crops. They also will eat rotten wood and small animals.
 * Diet in the Wild**

The diet of western lowland gorillas also includes the fleshy fruits of close to a hundred seasonally fruiting tree species; the diets of other gorilla subspecies include proportionally less fruit. Gorillas get some protein from invertebrates found on leaves and fruits. Adult male gorillas eat about 45 pounds (32 kg) of food per day. Females eat about two-thirds of that amount.

//Sources//

Gorilla. Exploring Nature Educational Resource. 29 July, 2008 from http://exploringnature.org/database/wildlife_detail.php?reference=291.