Facts About Mountain Gorillas : Mountain gorillas are animals that habit in the montane rain forest and the volcanic mountains of east Africa. These species are found in majorly 3 national parks of Bwindi impenetrable national park, Mgahinga gorilla national park which are found in the southwestern region of uganda, volcanoes national park in the northwest of Rwanda as well as Virunga national park in the east side of the democratic republic of Congo. Below are the actual facts about the endangered mountain gorillas;

The endangered mountain gorillas have the same DNA as humans which is 98%. Thus, they can easily acquire colds, flu, as well as other sickness from close contact with humans. That’s why the number of visitors is regulated each day for trekking.

Mountain gorillas live in a group of over 30 individuals which include females as well as young ones. The groups are lead by the head of a family  known as silverback.

The total population of the mountain gorillas in the world is estimated to be 900 individuals where half of the population is found in Bwindi impenetrable national park.

Mountain gorillas are considered to be endangered species due to the challenges they face such as poaching by hunters, diseases and many more.

The leaders of the various families are known a silverbacks and they are in charge of all activities of the family as well as fathering the children.

As the male mountain gorilla grows the hair on the back starts to become grey in colour and thus the name silverback.

The mountain gorillas are gentle giants and shy. However big they are these species are shy but when they are threatened they become aggressive, beat there chest as they grunt and roar.

The mountain gorillas can not survive in captivity and that’s why they aren’t found in the zoo. Therefore, they are found in the high forested mountains in Uganda, rwanda and democratic republic of Congo.

Mountain gorillas communicate in their own way such as gestures, grunts, barks, hoots as well as hand gestures. These are used in their social interactions when there’s an alarm they beat their chest, scream and roar.

The male mountain gorillas have a life span of 40 to 50 years.

The male gorilla is considered mature when they start to breed around the age of 15 and during this period their backs are still black.

The female mountain gorillas give birth at the age of ten and give birth to only one baby but rarely produce twins.

The female mountain gorillas give birth to 4 to 6 offspring throughout their entire reproductive lives.

The mountain baby gorillas weigh around 1.8kg at birth which is less than the human baby. But these grow at a faster rate than humans and sit upright at the age of three months.

Mountain gorillas every evening build their nests on tree branches for sleeping.

Mountain gorillas often use their four limbs to walk in order to balance.

The male mountain gorillas eat about 49 pounds of vegetables and females eat lower than that.

The male mountain gorillas are large and weight up to 390 pounds and the females weight half of the male gorillas about 240 to 250 pounds.

The mountain gorillas have nose prints such as human finger prints which is used to identify members of the family.

Therefore, with the above facts about the endangered mountain gorillas tourists need to be well conversant with them before they embark on the gorilla trekking safari in Africa.