Gorilla

The largest of all primates and mammals including Monkeys, Chimpanzees, and Orangutans. Gorillas are known to be social, herbivorous, and living peacefully, with many various variations that can been seen distinctively in gorillas, but not in human beings as walking with both their legs and hands. Gorillas live in the continent of Africa in a wide range along the equator, and they can be found in either lowland tropical rain forests or higher in rain forests, bamboo forests, and mountain slopes.

 Gorillas prefer to live in groups and each group is known as a troop which is formed of about 10 and up to 30 gorillas. For each troop, there is always a leader, which is the strongest and the most courageous individual among the troop with a silver back. The leader has a great responsibility of safety of the troop while traveling, wandering, going from one place to another to look for food, and when they spend a whole night somewhere as well. The leader is like the ship's captain who should always take decisions and take care of the individuals with him all the time. Sometimes the leader faces challenges such as a confrontation versus a young male that is willing to clinch the leadership. In such situations, the leader should be capable of scaring any unwanted gorilla away by baring the teeth, screaming, and making a loud noise.

Gorillas feed almost on plants only like fruits, stems, leaves, and seeds. The adult male would eat about 18 kilograms per day and this is because of the large strong stomach it has with a strong jaw that helps a lot with the mechanical digestion inside the mouth by chewing the food perfectly.

The troop does not stay in the same place for a long while. Each day, the leader leads his troop to a new area where there is a plenty of food. Every adult gorilla collects twigs, branches, and leaves while the youngsters play. After taking a nap, the gorillas will eat again until bedtime.

The female gorilla can have babies when it reaches the age of 8 and after leaving its troop to find another troop or a lone leader of a troop to live with. The newborn does not take much time to grow with the ability to learn at 5 or 6 months old how to walk and by 18 months of age it can follow its mother on foot for short distances. The safest place for the youngster is the mother's back.

Young gorillas learn by mimicking the behaviors of other individuals in the troop, and by play fighting with other youngsters. A young gorilla stays close to its mother until it is 4 to 6 years old. Gorillas are known to nurse for up to 3 years.

The only threat to gorillas is the humans who are responsible for the gorillas being endangered by hunting these creatures and demolishing their habitats. We, humans, should try to help in protecting gorillas and other African animals. These animals do not deserve what we do because simply they have the same right to live on this large planet that we share together.

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About Ahmed Taha

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