How many types of gorillas are there in Africa? Gorillas are by far amazing creatures in the wild and remarkably, they are the largest among the primate species. In Africa, there are only 2 types of gorillas; the Eastern gorillas and Western gorillas. Each gorilla type is comprised of sub-species and they can be spotted on African safari.
The Eastern gorilla specie is comprised of 2 sub-species of gorillas; the endangered mountain gorillas (also known as Gorilla beringei beringei) and the Eastern lowland gorillas (also famous as Gorilla beringei graueri). The western gorilla specie is composed of the Cross River Gorilla (Gorilla gorilla diehli) and Western lowland gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla).
Gorillas are considerably the largest primate species and they share over 98 percent of the DNA with humans making them their closest relatives. Wild gorillas can only be spotted in a few tropical rain-forests of Africa, marshes, highland, mountain areas and others. Check out the different types of gorillas in Africa below;
Mountain gorillas
Mountain gorillas are distinct types of gorillas in Africa and they are a sub-species of the Eastern gorilla. They exist in 2 different populations; a section of these primates thrives in the Virunga National Park-Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Mgahinga Gorilla National Park-Southwestern Uganda and Volcanoes National Park-Northwestern Rwanda. These 3 parks make up the larger Virunga Conservation Area (VCA).
Another section of mountain gorillas lives in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Southwestern Uganda. Presently, there are only 1063 mountain gorillas in the whole world and they exist only in Uganda, Rwanda and DRC making them the premier gorilla trekking destinations in Africa.
Trekking to see mountain gorillas in Africa is a lifetime experience and a gorilla permit in Uganda costs $700 for foreign non-residents, $600 for foreign residents and shs.250000 for the East African Community Citizens. Gorilla permits in Rwanda are issued at $1500 applying to all categories of visitors on gorilla trekking safari in Africa. In the DR Congo, permits cost $450.
Eastern Lowland Gorillas
Also known as Grauer’s gorilla, the Eastern Lowland Gorillas is another sub-species of the Eastern gorilla. These are inhabited in the montane forests of the DR Congo; Kahuzi-Biega National Park, Maiko National Park and areas of Itombwe Massifs, Usala Forests and other nearby areas. This gorilla species is the biggest of the gorilla sub-species. Eastern Lowland gorilla trekking is possible in Kahuzi-Biega National Park while you are on Congo safari. Presently, an estimate of about 3800 individuals of these endangered species still live in the wild.
Western Lowland Gorillas
The Western Lowland Gorillas make up sub-specie of the Western Gorilla which dwells in lowland swamps, primary, secondary and montane forests in Central Africa. These apes can be sighted in DR Congo, Angola, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and Central African Republic. They are the smallest sub-species of the various types of gorillas in Africa.
Cross River Gorillas
The Cross River Gorillas are by far distinct of the sub-species of gorillas. In 2006 they were listed by IUCN as the critically endangered species and an estimate of about 300 individuals still exist on earth today. Unlike other types of gorillas, this sub-specie of gorillas only lives at the border of Nigeria and Cameroon close to the Cross River’s headwaters.