Blog 2: Mountain Gorilla Habitat and Ecology

 Geographic Range
























            Mountain gorilla geographic range (seen in orange). Published and illustrated by All the World's Primates.

Habitat Use and Ranging


            The world’s remaining Mountain gorillas live in the high-altitude tropical rainforests of the sub-Saharan African countries of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Rwanda, and Uganda. Specifically, they live in two primary locations: Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in southwestern Uganda and the Virunga Mountain range between the eastern DRC and northern Rwanda. The presence of the large primates can be found at elevations of around 1,650-3,790 meters above sea level (Habitat and distribution, n.d.). The forested environments within these regions include a mixture of open and mixed forests as observed from a 2005 study. Open forests occur in low to middle elevations and are predominantly inhabited by woody plants and vines (Nkurunungi et al., 2005). Mixed forests occur on mountainous slopes where the dominant plant species are large trees, shrubs, vines, and ferns (Nkurunungi et al., 2005). During periods of high precipitation levels, Mountain gorillas congregate in open forests where they consume their primary diet of bamboo shoots (Grueter et al., 2016).


             The montane rainforest of Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in Uganda. Photograph by International Tree Foundation.

Locomotion

            According to visual examinations and studies of a gorilla’s locomotion, all species, including the Mountain gorilla, move around in their environment on all four limbs (two with their hands and two with their feet). In other words, this large primate species is classified as a grounded quadruped. Similar to other quadruped apes such as chimpanzees and bonobos, gorillas move around through knuckle-walking from their hands. This creates less pressure than walking when moving in rough terrain with their palms (Locomotion, 2020). In contrast, the shortened hind limbs are made for supportive plantigrade walking. This is also due to the elongated, flattened shape of the gorilla’s hind feet, which look similar to a human foot. However, when comparing morphology, there is a widened gap between the “big toe” phalange and the four smaller phalanges seen in gorillas. This unique feature allows gorillas, especially juveniles due to their smaller mass, to climb up trees readily. Like other primates’ thumbs, the “big toe” is tactile and flexible, allowing the animal to quickly grasp rigid, vertical surfaces, such as a tree trunk, (Gorilla anatomy, 2019). 


Ecology

 

According to reports by primatologists and biologists, Mountain gorillas are classified as omnivorous, but are generally folivores. These large primates consume most of their diet on perennial plants such as herbs and vines (Watts, 1998). However, these food categories can be broadened to include shoots, leaves, bark, roots, and wild celery (Mountain gorillas, n.d.). Interestingly, gorillas get their proper water intake from directly consuming the shoots and invertebrates such as insects as protein sources (Downey, 2019). Regarding the proper temporal food availability, Mountain gorillas can also consume flowers and fruits despite

not being a primary food source (Downey, 2019). Due to the mountainous ecology of the gorilla’s native range, their primary lower quality food sources are abundant at higher elevations compared to their angiosperm or flowering plant food sources. Since Mountain gorillas are a diurnal species, most foraging and feeding activities occur during the day (Watts, 1988). Other daytime activities occur at shorter times, including resting and socializing with troop members. Similar to other large herbivores in forested areas, Mountain gorillas play a critical role in shaping their natural environment. Like other mammals such as elephants and bison, Mountain gorillas disperse leftover plant materials by excreting their feces when traveling long distances. This common practice helps restore and regenerate plant diversity in the ecosystem (Downey, 2019). After they consume the tree or branch bark, they can use the leftover materials as shelter or nutrient intake for smaller animals, such as terrestrial invertebrates (Mountain gorillas, n.d.). Other leftover food pieces from gorillas can also be used as food sources by neighboring species within the montane rainforest community. 

 


A male silverback Mountain gorilla holding onto a shoot, one of their primary food sources. Photograph by Ruggiero Richard.


References

All the world’s primates. All The World’s Primates Home. (n.d.). [Map]. https://alltheworldsprimates.org/Home.aspx 

Downey, K. (2019). Mountain Gorilla, Gorilla beringei beringei. New England Primate Conservancy. https://neprimateconservancy.org/mountain-gorilla/#:~:text=As%20the%20second%2Dlargest%20primate,between%2040%20and%2050%20years.

Gorilla anatomy. Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund. (2019, November 15). https://gorillafund.org/uncategorized/gorilla-anatomy/

Grueter, C. C., Robbins, M. M., Abavandimwe, D., Ortmann, S., Mudakikwa, A., Ndagijimana, F., Vecellio, V., & Stoinski, T. S. (2016). Elevated activity in adult mountain gorillas is related to consumption of bamboo shoots. Journal of Mammalogy, 97(6), 1663–1670. https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyw132

Habitat and distribution. All About the Gorilla - Habitat and Distribution | United Parks & Resorts. (n.d.). https://seaworld.org/animals/all-about/gorilla/habitat/ 

Locomotion. Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund. (2020, June 12). https://gorillafund.org/uncategorized/locomotion/ 

Mountain gorillas. IFAW. (n.d.). https://www.ifaw.org/animals/mountain-gorillas 

Mountain gorillas. Mountain Gorillas - The Gorilla Organization. (n.d.). https://gorillas.org/about-gorillas/mountain-gorilla/ 

Nkurunungi, J. B., Ganas, J., Robbins, M. M., & Stanford, C. B. (2004). A comparison of two mountain gorilla habitats in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda. African Journal of Ecology, 42(4), 289–297. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2028.2004.00523.x

Watts, D. P. (1998). Long-term habitat use by mountain gorillas (Gorilla gorilla beringei). 1. Consistency, variation, and home range size and stability. International Journal of Primatology, 19, 651-680. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1020324909101

Watts, D. P. (1988). Environmental influences on mountain gorilla time budgets. American Journal of Primatology, 15(3), 195-211. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajp.1350150303



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