(1) Mountain Gorillas
(1.1) Gorillas are found mostly in rainforests in central Africa. Rainforests are places with lots of tall trees and lots of rain. It is often very humid and warm. Gorillas spend nearly half their day eating. In the wild, they are mostly vegetarian; eating leaves, shoots, stems, flowers, fruits and small insects.
(1.2) Gorillas are mammals that are part of the Hominidae family. This means they are related to other members of the Hominidae family such as chimpanzees and orangutans. The scientific name of the mountain gorilla is Gorilla beringei beringei.
(1.3) Mountain gorillas have large muscly arms and stomachs that are larger than their chests. Adult male mountain gorillas can weigh up to 220kg and females can weigh up to 90kg. Adult male gorillas can have a patch of silvery white fur on their lower back and are often called silverbacks.
(1.4) Gorillas have small fingers which they can use to break shells off the fruits they want to eat. They can also use their big bodies to fight off others who want to steal their food.
(1.5) Silverback gorillas might beat their chests loudly along with moving sideways, tearing up plants or slapping the ground to scare predators or communicate with other gorillas.
(1.6) Mountain gorillas don't have many animal predators. Humans are gorillas' main threats. Humans have cut down trees in their habitat, the rainforest. In the past, humans have also hunted gorillas for meat and for fun. Their only animal predator is the leopard.
(1.7) Recently, people have been going to visit gorillas in their natural habitat and helped to raise money and awareness about gorillas. Though this has helped slightly increase the population of gorillas, they are still an endangered species.
(1.8) Did you know that mountain gorillas have up to 16 different calls they use to share messages with each other? As well as having lots of different calls, each gorilla has a unique pattern on their nose; kind of like a human's fingerprints!
(1.9) I don't know that word...
Humid: when there is a lot of water in the air. The air can feel damp.
Communicate: To talk to, or share a message.
Predators: animals that might eat or harm mountain gorillas.
Habitat: the place where animals naturally live and grow.
Endangered: there aren't very many of that type of animal left in the world.
(2) Mountain Gorillas
From Britannca Kids: Kids
(2.1) Gorillas are peaceful and gentle animals. They are the largest animals of a group called Hominidae, which also includes monkeys. Movies often make gorillas seem like fierce animals but they are actually peaceful and gentle.
(2.2) Gorillas live in rainforests in Africa. All kinds of gorillas are endangered but the mountain gorilla is especially rare.
(2.3) Adult male gorillas may be up to 1.7 meters tall. Adult gorillas have long, strong arms and short, stocky legs. The chest is very thick and strong. The males have a bony crest on top of their head. Gorillas have a coat of black hair except on their faces, hands and feet.
(2.4) Gorillas live in family groups of about 6 to 30 animals. One or two older males lead the group. Gorilla use their arms and legs to walk. They support part of their weight on the knuckles of their hands. They rarely stand up straight. Gorilla spend most of their time on the ground. But they may also climb trees to sleep and feed. Gorillas eat plants, including fruits, leaves, stalks and shoots.
(2.5) I don't know that word...
Stocky: short and thick, quite thick in build.
Bony: you can see the shape of the bone underneath the skin and hair.
Crest: a raised point on an animals head.
Rarely: not very often.
(3) Mountain Gorillas
From Britannca Kids: Students
(3.1) Gorillas are native to Africa. They have frequently been portrayed in fictional tales as ferocious creatures. But gorillas are peaceful animals that subsist almost entirely on plant matter. Although they can appear intimidating when they encounter outsiders, including humans, they are rarely aggressive.
(3.2) Gorillas belong to the family Hominidae, which includes the other great apes - chimpanzees, orangutans, and bonobos. They all fall under the classification of mammal.
(3.3) Gorillas live only in tropical forests of equatorial Africa. The mountain gorilla is found only in rainforests in the mountains and bamboo forests of the highland region that sits north and east of Lake Kivu, near the borders of Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
(3.4) Gorillas are stocky, powerful animals. Their stomach sticks out and their chest is thick and heavily muscled. Their arms are a bit longer than their legs, which are short compared to the size of their body. Their forearms are powerful, with large hands and a long thumb. Their face, hands and feet lack hair and the chest of older males is bare. Gorillas display considerable physical differences between males and females. Adult males can stand as tall as 1.7 meters and weigh between 135 and 220 kilograms. Female gorillas are much smaller than males, standing approximately 1.5 meters tall but weighing between roughly 70-90 kilograms. Captive gorillas of both male and female gorillas may grow quite fat and hence become much heavier.
(3.5) Gorillas all have a short muzzle and large nostrils. The jaw is prominent and set forward in relation to the rest of the skull. Adult males have prominent crests at the top rear of the skull and at the bottom of their neck.
(3.6) Mountain gorillas have silky black hair. Mature adult males of all four subspecies have a saddle of silvery white hair on their lower backs and are thus known as silverbacks.
(3.7) Gorillas are diurnal, which means they are active during the day. They usually use legs and arms to walk. They walk on the soles of the feet while using the knuckles of their arms to turn. This action is similar to the way chimpanzees move. Gorillas often take a few steps using only their legs, but they travel only short distances in this manner. They are primarily terrestrial but are capable of climbing trees to feed. Studies suggest that gorillas spend almost half of their day feeding. The nearly vegetarian diet of gorillas in the wild consists mainly of leaves, shoots, and stems. They also eat some flowers, fruits and grubs. At night, gorillas build individual sleeping nests on the ground or in the trees. Each animal builds a new nest each night.
(3.8) Gorillas live in a group called a troop, which generally includes 6 to 30 members. The groups are led by one or two (occasionally more) silverback males that are related to each other. The leaders are usually a father and one or more of his sons. Occasionally brothers lead a group. The other members are females, infants, juveniles, and young adult males (blackbacks). Adult females join from outside the group, and the young are offspring of silverbacks.
(3.9) The gorilla is much larger than its closest relative, the chimpanzee, but is less boisterous. Although gorillas are relatively quiet, they do at times grunt, hoot, and bark. Aggressive males may roar. Although many people perceive gorillas as fierce, studies indicate that they are unaggressive unless disturbed. When that happens, the leading silverback of the group may make aggressive displays in attempting to protect his group. Such displays commonly involve chest beating, vocalisation, or running in short bursts toward the intruder followed in most instances by a discreet withdrawal. Chest beating is often part of a ritual that may also include running sideways, tearing at vegetation, and slapping the ground. Besides intimidating outsiders (gorilla or human), these displays also act as communication between groups. In addition, they are often used to maintain the dominance hierarchy within the group.
