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I live in the Virunga mountains in central Africa. I live in small groups with some of my friends. We roam the slopes of Rwanda, Uganda, and the Congo. I have very long fur, compared to my lowland cousins. I do not climb trees to often, as most of my food is located ground level. Right now, I am 22 years old, being one of the older members of my troop.
I weigh 395 pounds, which is mostly fat rather than bone. My food doesn’t have to many calories, so I am constantly eating as I roam.
Most of my fellow gorillas live in protected forests as well as I. My friends were kidnapped and slaughtered to be turned into ash trays. We had to be taken to different locations to protect us. It didn’t help that some of us were killed accidentally during war times.
A little about me..
Our main predator in the wild is humans. We are poached for fur, and our body parts. We are also very vulnerable to human diseases, and even the common cold can kill us.
The people have stopped killing us on purpose for the most part. Sometimes though, we run into snares set for other animals.
My competition
The dense forests I live in are very thick with plant life. There are over 11,000 species of plants where I live, which is great for me considering that is most of what I eat.
Much rain pours where I am, keeping the rivers full and clean. This is where I get most of my water to survive. I live with many other species like me, and they do not harm me. Most of my forest lives in peace.
My biome
Humans study me from distances when I roam the wild. It is a bit unnerving, but I can feel they do not want to harm me. They make sign language or symbols to represent things they are doing or things they want me to do
Other humans aren’t as nice. They poach us for our fur and bones that are becoming more rare. I do feel better when the nicer humans come because they protect me from hunters looking for me and my friends.
Human research
Donations to us can greatly lower the risk of us becoming extinct. The people of the national forests need income to help with all of our needs to survive.
Donate any amount to help us regain our population that we once had.
You can donate at http://www.awf.org/wildlife-conservation/mountain-gorilla to help us continue to live.
How you can help
http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/mountain-gorilla/
http://www.worldwildlife.org/species/mountain-gorilla
http://www.outtoafrica.nl/animals/enggorilla.html
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