The western lowland gorilla has a brownish-gray pelage color with reddish highlights. The eastern lowland gorilla has a black pelage color. The mountain gorilla is black like the eastern lowland gorilla, but the hair is longer. The adult male who controls the group develops silver airs on his back, thus the name silver-back. In the western lowland gorilla these silver hairs also go down to the rump and thighs. The male has a sagittal crest which is larger than that of the female.

The teeth of the gorilla have high crests that are used to help break down the leaves that make up a large proportion of their diet . This species has relatively long forelimbs and short hind limbs . The gorilla has a short trunk and a wide pelvis . Individual gorillas can be distinguished from the nose, each gorilla has a unique nose pattern, like the human fingerprint.

The gorilla is a wonderful species, but will also eat fruit, seeds, flowers, roots, herbs, insects, and clay. The clay is eaten for the minerals that the gorilla can not obtain from its regular food sources . The parts of the plants mostly eaten are the leaves, stems, and pith.

The favorite plants of the mountain gorilla are the leaves of the hacienda and wild trees and wild celery. Western lowland gorillas in Gabon will eat insects, the most favorite being the weaver ant. Some populations consume such a large amount of succulent herbs that they do not need to drink much water.

The lowland gorillas tend to consume more fruit than the mountain subspecies . This is a diurnal and a semi-terrestrial species, although the mountain gorilla is much less arboreal mainly the young play in trees.

Some Gorilla Facts:

• A mature male gorilla is called a Silver back This refers to the silver-colored hair covering his back, which occurs when he’s about 10-12 years old.
• Gorillas live in social, family groups, with an adult male leader, the Silver Back, and his harem of females and their offspring.
• In the wild, when males mature they are often driven out of their family group to find their own females and start their own groups. Sometimes bachelor groups are formed, where a group of adult male gorillas will stay together for several months or longer.
• In the wild, mature females will often be lured away from their family group by one of these wandering bachelor gorillas, and start their own group and family. This is nature’s way of avoiding inbreeding, which could occur if a youngster stayed in their family group after reaching sexual maturity.
• Gorillas are born after approximately 9 months of gestation, like humans.
• A young male (about 8 to 10 years old) is called a black jack. He’s almost as big as a Silver Back, but his hair has not turned silvery yet, and he still has a lot to learn.