Do Mountain Gorillas Climb Trees?

Do Mountain Gorillas Climb Trees? There has long been debate among tourists over whether mountain gorillas can climb trees, but this essay is going to address that issue. Along with Eastern lowland gorillas, these giant apes belong to the Eastern gorilla species and primarily inhabit the heavily forested mountain slopes between 8000 and 13,123 feet above sea level. These regions are characterized by frigid temperatures, and the gorillas’ darker, thicker, and longer fur is one response to these harsh living circumstances.

In terms of physical size and weight, these Great Apes are the second largest gorilla sub-species after their Eastern lowland counterparts, standing four to six feet tall and weighing between 130 and 220 kilograms. Anyone would question whether they can truly climb trees given their enormous size and weight. The question of whether these remarkable monkeys climb trees is answered by the fact that they spend the majority of their day on the ground, spending only five to twenty percent of their time on trees. It is true that mountain gorillas climb trees, but chimpanzees spend more time on trees (between 47 and 61 percent of the day) than orangutans, who spend nearly the whole day in trees.

Mountain gorillas only spend time on trees when they are playing, especially when they are young, or when they are attempting to gather fruits. Unlike chimpanzees and other tiny ape species, they rarely utilize their arms to swing from branch to branch when climbing trees; instead, they typically use all four limbs. Remarkably, young mountain gorillas spend a lot more time in trees than adults do, primarily for play, which is clearly made possible by their small stature and weight. There aren’t many trees in their natural environments that are suitable for making nests, and there aren’t many fruiting trees, which is why mountain gorillas hardly ever climb into trees. When climbing trees, they typically use both their hands and feet to cling onto tree branches and weak trunks.

Even the adults of the western lowland gorillas, which are found in the tropical rainforests of Gabon, the Central African Republic, Cameroon, Angola, the Republic of Congo, and Equatorial Guinea, spend a lot of time on trees. Due to their enormous weight, adult male mountain gorillas, also known as silverbacks, hardly ever walk above ground or on trees. However, they will climb up to fruiting trees if the branches can support their weight. This is the reason why some silverbacks have died during fruit picking. One such instance is the death of silverback Ndahura, the former leader of the Bitukura gorilla troop, who fell from a tree in December 2016 at the age of 28. Ruhamuka, a 30-year-old Kahungye subordinate silverback, also died in 2013 after suffering severe brain damage from a tree fall.

What time of year is ideal for seeing mountain gorillas?

Because different seasons provide distinct experiences, mountain gorillas can be observed all year round in three countries: Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Because there are fewer or no downpours during the dry season, the hiking paths are drier and less strenuous. However, fewer or no rainfall fall during the dry months of January, February, June, July, August, September, and December, which causes the vegetation to dry out and reduces the amount of food available. As a result, visitors will have to travel farther to see the mountain gorillas.

In addition to making hiking paths wetter, muddy, messier, and slippery, the torrential downpours that accompany the wet season can cause excursions to be delayed. But there is more greenery and less dust in the sky, which makes it easier to see and take pictures.