Lowland gorillas in the Congo
Lowland gorillas in the Congo
Lowland gorillas in Congo are located in some very less developed areas however a visit to the lowland gorillas in their natural habitat is possible in the Democratic republic of Congo. The lowland gorillas are one of the other three sub species of the gorilla species and the gorillas in general are the biggest primates on the entire earth. The gorillas tend to stay in forested lands, mountainous areas or the swampy lands of the Eastern, western and central Africa.
The most common gorillas in the Eastern part of Africa are the mountain gorillas and the lowland gorillas. The mountain gorillas are less in number compared to the lowland gorillas as the last census carried out put these mountain gorillas in the category of the endangered species on the IUCN species list. The mountain gorillas are said to be about 1,063 or so individuals left in the world but with the effective conservation efforts in and around the homes of these animals, the numbers are increasing at a steady pace.
The mountain gorillas can be visited in four national parks in the Eastern Africa and these are the Virunga national park of the DR Congo, the Volcanoes national park of Rwanda, the Mgahinga gorilla national park and the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest national park of Uganda. These are the only places in the world where you can visit the mountain gorillas in the wild and these are not great in captivity as they do not thrive.
The other gorilla species include the cross river gorillas and the western lowland gorillas. The western lowland gorillas are commonly found in the zoos as they have a higher chance of surviving in captivity. They are also evenly spread out in the areas of Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon, Gabon, Angola, Central African Republic, Congo Brazzaville and also in the Democratic republic of Congo. The biggest number of the western lowland gorillas is found in the Odzala national park of the Congo Brazzaville with about 100,000 individuals still living in the wild.
Behavior
The eastern lowland gorillas are much similar to the mountain gorillas however these are two different subspecies but they are both quiet and peaceful creatures. This does not totally rule out the fact that the lowland gorillas make sounds like barking, or high-pitched screams to communicate where necessary. They are peaceful as you will rarely see them being aggressive to humans or even each other.
Lowland gorilla conflicts among themselves happen and these are usually caused within their social setting as they live in families or incase of an intruder disturbing their peace or wanting to fight the lead male, the silverback gorilla. The lowland gorillas just like their names suggests, they tend to stay in the lowlands and the flat but forested land.
The lowland gorillas tend to stay in smaller gorilla groups/ gorilla families as compared to the mountain gorillas. They live in groups of about 20 to 30 individuals and are all lead by one dominant silverback gorilla. You may find more than one silverback in the gorilla family but these will be part of the family until they opt to break off and get their own family.
The silverback males that leave their gorilla family can also opt to stay lone males or join another group but its original family. The females also tend to move from their group once they have matured of age and join another group of preference to find mates to reproduce with.
The lowlands just like the mountain gorillas are quite large and heavy animals so they spend most of their time on ground as well as their nights. They make nests and sleep in a different nest every night this is why the gorilla trekking experience differs every day. The younger gorillas and the females may build nests in the trees at the top.
Appearance
The lowland gorillas have a darker fur color compared to the mountain gorillas and for the older and dominant males, the grey on the lower back goes further down to the thighs. The lowland gorillas are much smaller as compared to the mountain gorillas but with a wider and larger skull.
Their size and choice of natural habitat enables these apes to move long distances covering much more land than the mountain gorillas that are a bit bigger and heavier. They are equally intelligent animals and this can be spotted in the one hour during your gorilla trek.
Where?
The lowland gorillas in the Democratic republic of Congo are located in the Kahuzi Biega national park. The Kahuzi Biega national park is located in the Bukavu district in the southern Kivu province of DR Congo near the lake Kivu. There are about 400 eastern lowland gorillas that have been recorded in this park and these are categorized in 9 groups. A lowland gorilla trekking permit goes for only 400 USD per person.
You can access the Kahuzi Biega national park from Rwanda via the Rusizi land border of Rwanda and DR Congo in the south or by a 3-hour speed boat transfer from the Goma/ Virunga national park.
