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3-day Uganda mountain gorilla trekking safari starts in Kampala and ends at Entebbe international airport in Uganda. It involves meeting eye to-eye with the magical mountain gorillas

Mountain Gorilla Size, Height, And Weight

Mountain Gorilla Size, Height, And Weight

Mountain Gorilla Size, Height, And Weight

Mountain Gorilla Size, Height, And Weight- Mountain gorillas are divided into two species of eastern gorillas and western gorillas. mountain gorillas are subspecies of eastern gorillas together with eastern lowland gorillas. mountain gorillas are only found in three countries of East and Central Africa in countries of DR Congo, Uganda, and Rwanda. In Uganda, they are found in Bwindi impenetrable forest national park and Mgahinga gorilla park in the southwestern part of Uganda, volcanoes national park in the northwestern part of Rwanda, and lastly Virunga national park in eastern DR Congo.

Bwindi impenetrable forest national park has the highest population of mountain gorillas with over 20 habituated gorilla families and 2 families that are undergoing habituation in Rushaga sector. Mountain gorillas have 98% human DNA just like chimpanzees and bonobos. They live at high elevations of tropical and subtropical rainforests of the Virunga conservation area and Bwindi impenetrable forest national park.

Mountain gorillas have nose prints that differ from each other just like human beings have thumbprints different from each person, mountain gorillas make new nests every day and the young ones sleep with their mothers until they are ready to make their own. The nests are made out of tree branches and leaves

Size of mountain gorillas

Mountain gorillas are the largest primates living in the whole world, baby mountain gorillas are born vulnerable just like human babies and weigh about 1.8kgs to 2kgs. The babies only take breast milk from their mothers until the age of 4 years. The size of mountain gorillas keeps changing as they grow up and an old female can grow up to 98 kgs while a male can grow up to 160kgs. They are 4 to 6 feet tall.

Mountain gorillas are entirely herbivores animals that feed mainly on vegetation such as stems, leaves, fruits, bamboo shoots, pith, bark and sometimes supplement their diet with ants, insects, and termites. Mountain gorillas use sticks to collect termites in holes and also to measure the depth of the waters before they cross. 25% of their diet is made up of fruits.

Mountain gorilla weight

Mountain gorillas have sizable weight with their well-shaped muscular bodies, old male mountain gorillas weigh bigger than female old mountain gorillas. an adult male mountain gorilla can weigh up to 160 kgs and a female mountain gorilla can weigh up to 98kgs. Some gorilla species are much bigger than mountain gorillas and the heaviest mountain gorilla ever was 267kgs in Ambam Cameroon. Western gorillas can weigh up to 310kgs in captivity and can hardly survive in zoos.

The height of mountain gorillas

An average height of a mountain gorilla is 1.7 meters tall, adult male gorilla height ranges from 5ft 5 to 6ft while female gorillas are shorter than male mountain gorillas with a height of about 5 feet.

Mountain gorillas move on four legs but can also stand on hind legs. The tallest gorilla ever recorded was 1.95 meters tall with a wide chest of about 1.98 meters and an arm span of 2.7 meters having a total weight of 219kgs. This gorilla was shot in 1938 in Alimbogo north of Kivu.

Where to meet mountain gorillas – gorilla trekking size experience

To know more about mountain gorilla size, weight, and height you can visit Virunga national park in eastern DR Congo, Volcanoes national park in northwestern Rwanda, Bwindi impenetrable forest national park, and Mgahinga gorilla park in southwestern Uganda where you can have a maximum of one hour with these gentle apes in the natural habitats learning more about their behaviors and taking photos.

Gorilla trekking permit prices

Gorilla trekking permits are cards issued out by different tourism bodies of gorilla countries to allow a person to trek these gentle apes. mountain gorilla trekking permits are sold to persons above the age of 15 and trekking cannot be done by a person who has infectious diseases such as flu, cough, and diarrhea as these mountain gorillas have a weak immune system to fight diseases.

A gorilla permit for DR Congo costs $450 in the dry season and $200 in the low season, Rwanda sells her permit at $1500 and lastly, Uganda permits cost $700 for foreign nonresidents, $600 for foreign residents, and shs250,000 Citizens of East Africa.

Gorilla habituation

Gorilla habituation is the process of making mountain gorillas get used to the human presence around them. Gorilla habituation experience is only done in the Rushaga sector located in the south of Bwindi impenetrable forest national park in southwestern Uganda. There are only two gorilla families that are undergoing habituation and these are Bikingi and Bushaho gorilla families. Gorilla habituation is done with a help of researchers and it takes 4 hours of having a good time with mountain gorillas, unlike gorilla trekking which takes only 1 hour.

Price of gorilla habituation in Uganda

With gorilla habituation permits, you can move with rangers and researchers to habituate mountain gorilla families Bikingi or Bushaho in Rushaga sector of Bwindi impenetrable forest national park. Gorilla habituation permits in Rushaga sector cost $1500 per person and it allows you to spend a maximum of 4 hours with mountain gorillas learning about their behaviors and taking pics.

Those planning to habituate mountain gorillas are advised to book their permits in advance of 3-4 months most especially if planning to habituate in the dry season so as to avoid disappointments of finding permits sold out and you habituate in the rainy season when there is a lot of rainfall and the trails muddy.

What is the best time to visit mountain gorillas?

Mountain gorillas can be visited at any them of year but there are months that are better than the rest and these are drier months of June, July, August, September, December, January, and February. It’s during these dry months that the trails are not muddy, passable and the roads leading to the park are slippery

The dry season is also not bad for trekking but there is a lot of rainfall making the trails in the park slippery in the park. The only good thing with trekking in the rainy season is that the lodges offer discounts and some countries such as DR Congo offer gorilla permit discounts.

What to pack for gorilla trekking?

A good packing list for a gorilla trekking safari should include waterproof hiking shoes, a rain jacket, long warm sleeved clothes, insect repellents, a hat, sunscreen, face mask, sanitizer, energy-giving snacks, drinking water, a camera, binoculars, and a walking stick.

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