Western Lowland Gorilla
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| Western Lowland Gorilla | ||||||||||||||||
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 Jock (male) at Bristol Zoo, England
 Western Lowland Gorilla at Cincinnati Zoo
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| Gorilla gorilla gorilla (Savage, 1847) |
The Western Lowland Gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) is a subspecies of the Western Gorilla (Gorilla gorilla) that lives in montane, primary, and secondary forests and lowland swamps in Angola, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea and Gabon. It is the gorilla usually found in zoos.
A male Western Lowland Gorilla can stand 6 feet tall and weigh almost 450 lbs.[2]
The Western Lowland Gorilla eats plants and, occasionally, insects. They live in family groupings of one dominant male, five to seven adult females, children and adolescents, and possibly a few non-dominant males.
Adult male Gorillas are prone to cardiomyopathy, a degenerative heart disease. Babec, a Western Lowland Gorilla on exhibit at the Birmingham Zoo in Birmingham, Alabama (USA) was the first gorilla to receive an artificial pacemaker.
The Western Lowland Gorilla is the most widespread and common gorilla, but was classified in 2007 as Critically Endangered because its population was projected to decline more than 80 percent over three generations (66 years).[1] The Western Lowland Gorilla is critically endangered due to the Ebola virus and their main predators: man (poachers) and leopards.[3] Re-population of Ebola affected areas is slow since female gorillas don't begin reproducing until the age of nine or ten and only produce one baby every five years.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ a b Tutin, C., Walsh, P., Baillie, J., Maisels, F. & Stokes, E. (2007). Gorilla gorilla ssp. gorilla. 2007 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2007. Retrieved on 2007-09-12.
- ^ Western Lowland Gorilla Bio Facts Retrieved 2008-03-22.
- ^ Western Lowland Gorilla - Gorilla gorilla gorilla Retrieved 2008-03-22.
- ^ Planet Of No Apes? Experts Warn It's Close CBS News Online, 2007-09-12. Retrieved 2008-03-22.
[edit] External links
- ARKive - images and movies of the western gorilla (Gorilla gorilla)
- The Gorilla Foundation
- The Big Zoo: Western Lowland Gorilla
- Zoo.org: Western Lowland Gorilla
- Columbus Zoo and Aquarium: Western Lowland Gorilla
- Oklahoma City Zoo: Western Lowland Gorilla
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