Intro

Hello and Welcome to this episode of the podcast, "The Mnemonic Tree", where we add a single mnemonic leaf to our Tree of Knowledge.

I’m Jans your Mnemonic Man and for today's episode we are going back to the animal world and will be on the big and brawny but loving and caring, gorilla.

Gorillas are both the largest and strongest primates on Earth. They are native to the tropical and sub-tropical forests of equatorial Africa, where they can be found in 10 African countries.

They are primarily divided into two species which are the Eastern gorilla and the Western gorilla. The Eastern gorilla has two subspecies which are the Eastern Lowland gorilla and the Mountain gorilla, whilst the Western gorilla has the Western Lowland gorilla and the Cross River gorilla.

They live in complex social structures and are led by the silverback. They are primarily herbivores spending approximately a quarter of their day eating.

Mainly due to habitat loss and poaching they are either endangered or critically endangered and their plight has been illustrated in many movies, none more poignant than the movie ‘Gorillas in the Mist’ which was mainly shot in the Rwandan habitat of the Mountain gorillas. And it would be remiss of me if I didn’t mention ‘King Kong’ which has had 13 film versions and was an absolute tear jerker!

Along with the movies they are also a cartoon favourite with gorillas such as Grape Ape from ‘The Great Grape Ape Show,’ Bingo from ‘The Banana Splits,’ Magilla Gorilla from ‘The Magilla Gorilla Show,’ Gorilla Grodd from DC Comics and Winston and Donkey Kong from video games.

Today’s mnemonic will be on gorillas; the two species and the four subspecies.

So, with that being said, we will begin with a summary from Wikipedia.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:N%27Tami,_Western_Gorilla.jpg

Wikipedia Summary

Gorillas are herbivorous, predominantly ground-dwelling great apes that inhabit the tropical forests of equatorial Africa. The genus Gorilla is divided into two species: the eastern gorilla and the western gorilla, and either four or five subspecies.

The DNA of gorillas is highly similar to that of humans, from 95 to 99% depending on what is included, and they are the next closest living relatives to humans after chimpanzees.

Gorillas are the largest living primates, reaching heights between 1.25 and 1.8 m (4 ft 1 in and 5 ft 11 in), weights between 100 and 270 kg (220 and 600 lb), and arm spans up to 2.6 m (8 ft 6 in), depending on species and sex.

They tend to live in troops, with the leader being called a silverback. The eastern gorilla is distinguished from the western by darker fur colour and some other minor morphological differences. Gorillas tend to live 35–40 years in the wild.

Gorillas' natural habitats cover tropical or subtropical forest in Sub-Saharan Africa. Although their range covers a small percentage of Sub-Saharan Africa, gorillas cover a wide range of elevations. The mountain gorilla inhabits the Albertine Rift montane cloud forests of the Virunga Volcanoes, ranging in altitude from 2,200 to 4,300 m (7,200 to 14,100 ft).

Lowland gorillas live in dense forests and lowland swamps and marshes as low as sea level, with western lowland gorillas living in Central West African countries and eastern lowland gorillas living in the Democratic Republic of the Congo near its border with Rwanda.

There are thought to be around 316,000 western gorillas in the wild, and 5,000 eastern gorillas. Both species are classified as Critically Endangered by the IUCN; all subspecies are classified as Critically Endangered with the exception of the mountain gorilla, which is classified as Endangered.

There are many threats to their survival, such as poaching, habitat destruction, and disease, which threaten the survival of the species. However, conservation efforts have been successful in some areas where they live.

Extracted from: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gorilla]

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mountain_gorilla,_2-year-old,_Mubare_Group,_Buhoma,_Bwindi_Impenetrable_Forest,_Uganda.jpg

Mnemonic

Gorillas – Two Species & 4 Subspecies Mnemonic – WE Climbed the Western and Eastern Mountain to see the gorillas

(Picture yourself climbing both the Western and Eastern Mountains to see the Western, Eastern, and Mountain gorillas)

1. Western Gorilla - Species

2. Eastern Gorilla - Species

3. Cross River Gorilla (Western Gorilla – Subspecies)

4. Western Lowland Gorilla (Western Gorilla – Subspecies)

5. Eastern Lowland Gorilla (Eastern Gorilla – Subspecies)

6. Mountain Gorilla (Eastern Gorilla – Subspecies)

Five Fun Facts

1. There are around 316,000 western gorillas and around 5,000 eastern gorillas in the wild. Both species are classified as critically endangered by the IUCN along with their subspecies, apart from the mountain gorilla, which are classified as endangered. Wild gorillas’ natural habitat is tropical to sub-tropical and can be found across 10 African countries. Eastern gorillas live in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, and Rwanda. While Western gorillas, can be found in Nigeria, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Republic of Congo, Angola, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

2. Gorillas are the largest and most powerful living primate alive today. An average silverback gorilla can weigh around 180kg, with a height of 170cm or 5 foot 5 inches on all fours. When standing they can reach around six feet.

3. Gorillas are just like us! Well not quite but they do share around 98.3% of our DNA. Our closest relative is the chimpanzee which shares an astonishing 98.8% of their DNA, which is then closely followed by the Bonobos at 98.7%. Though genetically we are close, immunities are different and thus exposure to human illnesses can have a detrimental impact on gorillas.

4. Gorillas have a voracious appetite and spend roughly a quarter of their day eating mainly plants which includes leaves, shoots, and stems. They also eat larvae, snails, ants, roots, barks, and rotting wood. When food is scarce, they have also been known to eat meat, and contrary to popular belief they do not eat bananas.

5. Most gorillas live in family groups of around 10 members. They are led by the dominant male or silverback who has mating rights over the females. Males between 8 to 12 years old are called ‘Blackbacks’. They then develop a silver section of hair over their back and hips from 12 years onwards, earning them the name ‘silverback’.