Western gorilla
The western gorilla (Gorilla gorilla) is a great ape found in Africa, one of two species of the hominid genus Gorilla. Large and robust with males weighing around 168 kilograms (370 lb), the hair is significantly lighter in color than that of the eastern gorilla, (Gorilla beringei), and geographically isolated from them in a region at the midwest of the African continent. It is the second largest living primate after the eastern gorilla. Two subspecies are recognised for the western lowland gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) is found in most of West Africa while the Cross River gorilla (Gorilla gorilla diehli) is limited to a smaller range in the north at the border of Cameroon and Nigeria. Both subspecies are listed Critically Endangered.
| Western gorilla | |
|---|---|
| Male at the San Francisco Zoo | |
| Female with infant at the Bronx Zoo | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Primates |
| Suborder: | Haplorhini |
| Infraorder: | Simiiformes |
| Family: | Hominidae |
| Subfamily: | Homininae |
| Genus: | Gorilla |
| Species: | G. gorilla |
| Binomial name | |
| Gorilla gorilla (Savage, 1847) | |
| Subspecies | |
|
Western lowland gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) | |
| Western gorilla range. Each of the two subspecies is confined to two separate regions. | |