The Gorilla is one of the species of apes in the Planet of the Apes franchise.
Evolution & Classification
There are two distinct species of gorilla: the Eastern gorilla (Gorilla beringei )and Western gorilla (Gorilla gorilla), which are both native to Central Africa, as are chimpanzees and bonobos. In reality, gorillas are more passive and sedate apes than the aggressive chimpanzees. There are over 100,000 Western lowland gorillas in the jungles of Africa.
Physiology
Gorillas move around by knuckle-walking, although they sometimes walk bipedal for short distances while carrying food or in defensive situations, and some mountain gorillas use other parts of their hand to aid locomotion (studies of 77 mountain gorillas published in 2018 showed 61% only used knuckle walking, but the remainder used knuckle walking plus other parts of their hand—fist walking in ways that do not use the knuckles, using the backs of their hand, and using their palms). Wild male gorillas weigh 300 to 430 lb, while adult females usually weigh 150–250 lb, which is half of an adult male's.
Adult males between 4 ft 7 in to 6 ft 5 in tall in height, with an arm span that stretches from 7 ft 7 in to 8 ft 10 in. Female gorillas are shorter at 4 ft 1 in to 4 ft 11 in, with smaller arm spans. Adult male gorillas are known as silverbacks due to the characteristic silver hair on their backs reaching to the hips. Males in captivity are noted to be capable of reaching weights up to 683 lb. Gorilla facial structure is described as mandibular prognathism, that is, the mandible protrudes farther out than the maxilla. Adult males also have a prominent sagittal crest.
The eastern gorilla is more darkly colored than the western gorilla, with the mountain gorilla being the darkest of all. The mountain gorilla also has the thickest hair. The western lowland gorilla can be brown or grayish with a reddish forehead. In addition, gorillas that live in lowland forests are more slender and agile than the more bulky mountain gorillas. The eastern gorilla also has a longer face and broader chest than the western gorilla.
In the Franchise
- In the original Planet of the Apes series, the gorillas served as the military, hunters, police, and labourers of the ape society, although in the original source novel the ape president was also a gorilla.
- The gorillas in the Chernin Entertainment film reboot series typically serve as Caesar's "muscle" in the Ape Army, as seen when Buck became his personal bodyguard. Caesar maximizes the gorillas' skills by having them use their incredible brute strength and imposing size, which were both essential during the Ape Rebellion. Prior to the destruction of the Ape Village, the gorillas, led by Luca, served as the village guardians. It is shown that the gorillas have the same intelligence as the rest of the apes, as they show signs of understanding what the other apes say and mean, and Buck demonstrated the green eyes of an evolved ape before his death. Luca and Winter can also perform sign language to communicate.
Gallery
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External links
https://www.awf.org/wildlife-conservation/mountain-gorilla https://disney-animals.fandom.com/wiki/Western_Gorilla https://disney-animals.fandom.com/wiki/Mountain_Gorilla https://disney-animals.fandom.com/wiki/Eastern_Lowland_Gorilla