Gorillas live in the tropical woods of equatorial Africa, where they are herbivorous giant apes that mostly stay on the ground. The eastern and western gorillas are the two main species in the Gorilla genus, and there are four to five subspecies within each.
After chimpanzees and bonobos, gorillas are our closest living cousins in terms of genetic similarity, with a degree of similarity ranging from 95 to 99 percent.
As the biggest living primates, gorillas may grow to a height of 1.25 to 1.8 meters, weigh up to 606 pounds, and have a 2.6-meter arm span, depending on the species and sex.
Typically, they form groups, with the leader known as a silverback. There are also slight morphological distinctions between the Eastern and Western gorillas.
In the wild, gorillas have an average lifespan of 35–40 years. In this piece, we’ll be examining the heaviest to lightest gorilla species in the world. Stay tuned to learn more:
Eastern Gorilla
The eastern gorilla (Gorilla beringei) is the genus “Gorilla’s” largest extant ape and a critically endangered species. It is also the most endangered species of the Gorilla genus.
The species is now divided into two subspecies, which are detailed below. There are 3,800 groups of eastern lowland gorillas (G. b. graueri) in the eastern lowlands and 1,000 mountain gorillas (G. b. beringei).
1. Eastern Lowland Gorilla
The eastern lowland gorilla (Gorilla beringei graueri), commonly known as Grauer’s gorilla, is a severely endangered subspecies. The eastern gorilla is found only in the hilly forests of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Eastern lowland gorilla can weigh up to 450 pounds.
Males may stand 1.69 to 1.96 meters (5 ft 7 in to 6 ft 5 in) tall, while females can reach 1.6 meters (5 ft 7 in to 6 ft 5 in) (5.2 ft).
2. Mountain Gorilla
Mountain gorillas are mostly terrestrial and quadrupedal. However, if the branches are robust enough to sustain their weight, they will climb onto fruiting trees.
Their arms, like the arms of other great apes are longer than their legs. They walk by knuckle-walking, with the backs of their curled fingers supporting their weight rather than the palms of their hands.
The average male is 161–171 cm (63–67 inches) tall and weighs 120–191 kilograms (265–421 pounds). He has a girth of 138–163 centimeters (54–64 inches), an arm span of 2–2.7 meters (6 ft 7 in to 8 ft 10 in), and a height of 161–171 centimeters (63–67 inches).
Females weigh between 70 and 98 kg (154 and 216 lb) less than males.
Western Gorilla
The western gorilla (Gorilla gorilla) is an African great ape. It is one of two species in the Gorilla genus. Their hair is much lighter in color than that of the eastern gorilla, Gorilla beringei, and they are physically isolated from them in the African continent’s midwest.
They are the heaviest gorilla species in the world, weighing around 168 kilograms (370 pounds) on average. The heaviest recorded gorilla was a 1.83-meter (6.0-foot) silverback weighing 267 kilograms (589 lb) from the western gorilla species.
There are two recognized gorilla subspecies. Western lowland gorillas and Gorilla gorilla diehli (Cross River gorilla), which is isolated to a smaller territory in the north along the border of Cameroon and Nigeria, are the two species.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature has listed both as Critically Endangered.
1. Western Lowland Gorilla
The western lowland gorilla is the lightest gorilla subspecies, although it retains a great deal of power and stature. Males and females of this species of gorilla are quite distinct.
Their bodies are jet black save for their faces, ears, hands, and feet since they don’t have tails. They also have coarse black hair that covers the majority of their body save for the following areas:
A male may weigh up to 270 kg (600 lb). The average weights for males and females are 140 kg (310 lb) and 90 kg (145 lb), respectively (200 lb). Captive males, on the other hand, are claimed to be capable of reaching weights of up to 275 kg (606 lb).
Males can stand up straight at 1.67 m (5 ft 6 in). Females have a standing height of 1.5 m (5 ft 6 in) (4 ft 11 in).
2. Cross River Gorilla
These gorillas are smaller in their palates, their cranial vaults, and their skulls than western lowland gorillas. As far as limb and bone length are concerned, there is little difference between the Cross River gorilla and Western lowland gorillas.
Female cross river gorillas weigh on average 100kg (220 lb), whereas male cross river gorillas weigh between 140 and 200 kg (310 and 440 lb) on average.
