Where Do Gorillas Live? Gorilla Habitats in Central Africa

Two species, four subspecies

All gorillas belong to two species, each split into two subspecies. Their ranges do not overlap:

The western gorilla includes the western lowland and Cross River gorillas, and the eastern gorilla includes the Grauer’s and mountain gorillas. Altogether, gorillas live wild in about ten countries.

Where do western lowland gorillas live?

Western lowland gorillas live in the vast forest block of western Central Africa, which covers roughly 700,000 km² (270,000 sq mi). Their range runs from southern Cameroon through Gabon, mainland Equatorial Guinea, the Republic of the Congo and the southwestern Central African Republic to the Cabinda enclave of Angola. It is bounded by the Sanaga River in Cameroon, the Ubangi River and the lower Congo River.

They live mainly below 1,000 m (3,300 ft) in tropical rainforest, swamp forest and along rivers. They often visit bais, open marshy clearings in the forest, to feed on water plants. Important strongholds include Nouabalé-Ndoki and Odzala-Kokoua National Parks in the Republic of the Congo and Loango and Lopé National Parks in Gabon. Many gorillas live in remote swamp forests, which is one reason earlier counts underestimated their numbers.

Where do Cross River gorillas live?

The Cross River gorilla is the rarest gorilla. It lives in rugged, hilly forest along the border between Nigeria and Cameroon, about 250 km (160 mi) northwest of the nearest western lowland gorillas. The population is split among roughly a dozen small patches of forest, between about 150 and 1,600 m (490–5,250 ft) above sea level, including Cross River National Park in Nigeria and Takamanda National Park in Cameroon.

Where do mountain gorillas live?

Mountain gorillas live in two small, isolated areas in the Albertine Rift, the mountainous western branch of the East African Rift:

• The Virunga Mountains, a chain of volcanoes on the borders of Rwanda, Uganda and DR Congo, protected by Volcanoes National Park (Rwanda), Mgahinga Gorilla National Park (Uganda) and Virunga National Park (DRC). Here gorillas live mostly between about 2,200 and 3,800 m (7,200–12,500 ft) in bamboo forest, Hagenia woodland and misty subalpine zones, where nights can be near freezing.
• Bwindi Impenetrable National Park in southwestern Uganda, with the small neighboring Sarambwe Reserve in DRC. This is steep, densely forested hill country at about 1,200–2,600 m (3,900–8,500 ft).

The two populations are only about 30 km (19 mi) apart, but are separated by farmland. Their cool, wet mountain homes explain why mountain gorillas have such long, thick fur. Find out how their numbers have recovered in How many mountain gorillas are left?

Where do Grauer’s gorillas live?

Grauer’s gorillas, also called eastern lowland gorillas, live only in eastern DR Congo, between the Lualaba River and the mountains of the Albertine Rift. They have the widest elevation range of any gorilla, from lowland rainforest at about 600 m (2,000 ft) to bamboo and mountain forest above 2,500 m (8,200 ft).

Key populations live in Kahuzi-Biega and Maiko National Parks, the Itombwe Massif and community reserves such as Tayna. Because of war, mining and hunting, they now survive in only a fraction of their former range, and many live outside national parks.

Why are there no gorillas in the middle of the Congo Basin?

Between the western and eastern gorillas lies a gap of about 900 km (560 mi) of central Congo Basin forest with no gorillas at all. Much of this area lies south of the great bend of the Congo River, where bonobos live instead.

Scientists think the two gorilla groups became separated long ago. Genetic studies suggest that western and eastern gorillas began to diverge at least about a million years ago, and that changes in climate, which at times shrank the forests into separate refuges, together with large rivers, kept them apart. Today the two species differ in coat color, size and diet.

What do gorillas need from their habitat?

Wherever they live, gorillas need plenty of green plants to eat, such as leaves, stems, pith and fruit, along with places to build their nightly nests. Fruit-rich lowland forests let western gorillas eat a lot of fruit, while mountain gorillas live mostly on leaves and stems, which are abundant year-round; see What do gorillas eat?

Gorillas are not territorial. Each group wanders a home range of several to a few dozen square kilometers, which often overlaps with neighboring groups. Loss of forest to farming, logging and mining, along with hunting and disease, is the biggest threat to gorilla habitat across Africa.