DISTRIBUTION AND STATUS Range: West & Central Africa Habitat: Tropical & montane rain forests                  Including forest swamps IUCN Status: Critically Endangered CITES Appendix: Appendix 1 Population in Wild: 175,000 to 225,000 ISIS captive population : 755 BEHAVIOR AND ECOLOGY Locomotion: Quadrupedal knuckle walking / cautious climbers Activity Cycle: Diurnal Social Groups: 4-6 adults.  Male silverback dominates Diet: Leaves, stems, pith, fruit, seeds, insects Predators: Man, leopard

 

REPRODUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT Sexual Maturity: M: 12-15 yrs                                  F:  8.5-10 yrs Gestation: 8.5 months Birth weight: ~4.4 lbs Age at Weaning: 3+ years Longevity: 30-40 years in wild                       50 in captivity SPECIES HIGHLIGHTS Feature Facts: Largest primate.  Westen gorilla is only species in zoos Society Press: Mbongo and Ngagi, eastern lowland gorillas, were bought from Martin and Osa Johnson as a "breeding pair" in 1931.  Later it was discovered that both were male

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