How Long Do Gorillas Live? Gorilla Lifespan Facts

Gorilla lifespan in the wild

A wild gorilla that survives childhood can expect to live into its late 30s, and some reach around 40 or a little more. These figures come from long-term studies of known individuals, especially mountain gorillas in Rwanda, which have been followed since the 1960s, and western lowland gorillas in places such as Gabon and the Republic of the Congo.

The average lifespan from birth is much lower than this maximum, because many infants and young gorillas die before reaching adulthood. As with other long-lived animals, a gorilla that makes it through its vulnerable early years has a good chance of a long life.

Record-breaking zoo gorillas

Several zoo gorillas have lived past 60, all of them western lowland gorillas, the gorilla kept in nearly all zoos.

• Fatou was born in the wild in West Africa around 1957 and came to Berlin Zoo in 1959. In 2020 she passed the previous record and became the oldest gorilla ever documented. She turned 68 in 2025. Because her exact birth date is unknown, the zoo celebrates her birthday on April 13.
• Trudy of the Little Rock Zoo in Arkansas lived to about 63 and held the record until she died in 2019.
• Ozzie of Zoo Atlanta was the oldest male gorilla on record when he died in 2022 at the age of 61.
• Colo, born at the Columbus Zoo in Ohio in 1956, was the first gorilla born in a zoo. She lived to 60 and died in 2017.

These cases show that gorillas can live far longer than the wild average when they are protected from disease, injury and poaching and receive veterinary care.

Why gorillas live so long and breed so slowly

Gorillas live their whole lives at a slow pace. A female does not usually give birth until she is about 10 years old. After a pregnancy of about eight and a half months, she has a single infant that nurses for three to four years, and she rarely becomes pregnant again until it is weaned. Births are therefore about four years apart.

Since many infants do not survive, a female in the wild may raise a youngster to independence only every six to eight years, and perhaps only a handful in her whole life. Males take even longer to mature, becoming full-grown silverbacks at around 12–15 years, and many never lead a group of their own. This slow life history is typical of large, intelligent mammals, and it means gorilla populations take decades to recover from losses. It is one reason the western gorilla is Critically Endangered.

What causes death in wild gorillas?

Adult gorillas have few natural predators, though leopards occasionally kill them, especially young animals. The main causes of death in the wild are:

• Disease: respiratory infections, often caught from humans, are a major killer of habituated mountain gorillas. The Ebola virus has killed thousands of western gorillas in outbreaks since the 1990s.
• Fights between males: when two groups meet or an outsider tries to take over a group, silverbacks may fight with their long canine teeth and cause serious wounds.
• Infanticide: a male that takes over a group may kill infants fathered by another male. Infants without a protecting silverback are especially at risk.
• People: poaching for bushmeat, snares set for antelopes and other animals, and the loss of forest habitat shorten many gorilla lives.

How do gorillas age?

Older gorillas show signs of aging much like people. Their hair grays and thins, their teeth wear down, they may lose weight and muscle, and they move and climb more slowly. Older silverbacks are often replaced as group leaders by younger males, sometimes their own sons.

In zoos, the leading cause of death in adult male gorillas is heart disease. Zoos in Europe and North America now monitor gorilla hearts closely and adjust diets, with more leafy browse and less sugary food, to help their gorillas live longer, healthier lives.

Gorilla lifespan compared with other apes

Gorillas live about as long as other great apes. Wild chimpanzees can also live into their 40s or 50s, and zoo chimpanzees have passed 60; see How long do chimpanzees live? Orangutans are similar or slightly longer-lived. All of them live much longer than most monkeys, but none come close to the longest-lived humans. For a wider view, see the longest-living animals.