Meet Uganda’s Great Silver Back Gorillas
Gorilla trekking is one of the best wildlife encounters in the whole world. While on a trek through the impenetrable jungles of Africa, your eyes are first set on the dominant silver back the head of the entire gorilla family. There are two protected areas where Uganda’s mountain gorillas are protected; the tropical rain forests of Bwindi impenetrable forest and Mgahinga gorilla national park. These parks are located in southwestern Uganda. These rain forests date back to even more than 25000years and they have about 400 diverse plant species. These forests shelter approximately 400 mountain gorillas, which is almost half of the worlds surviving mountain gorillas almost half of the world’s total population of mountain gorillas with their leaders the great silver backs.
Silver backs are the mature male leaders in the groups of mountain gorillas in the forest. Their name encompassed from their silver saddles across their backs. Thesilver back being the head of the group, he is accounted for the safety of his group (troop). This troop consists of 5 to 30 gorillas. The silver back are always in charge of the troop, to make decisions on where the group forages for food, where to travel, where its to rest and where its to sleep at night.
Silver back gorillas are huge with a height of about 5.7 to 6.2feet and weight of 360pounds.According to their heads; their ears are too small for them. They have large bony crests on the tops of their skulls and backs to support their teeth and jaw muscles, and also to give their heads that conical shape. The silverbacks are the hairy species of gorillas. They have long and thick hair to helps them in insulation while at higher elevations. They have uniquely shorter legs compared to their hands. At the age of twelve, these silverbacks start developing their silver saddles; the young males that have not developed these saddles yet are called “black backs”.
The silverbacks are quite gentle and shy despite their huge size and strength. They are very social, though only with in their specific family . They are affectionate; they play and hug with each other just like the humans do. They also laugh and even throw things when angry as the humans. Otherwise, they are very peaceful animals.
They feed on vegetables, along the edges of dense forests though they can also feed on crop plants and rotting wood. They eat up to 45pounds of food in a day. The silver back is usually the only male in a troop to mate with all the females. The females choose this silverback because of its strength and size. Sometimes the silver back will allow other males to mate with one of the females in the family. The black backs (juvenile male gorillas) are no allowed to mate with females in the entire group. They are then forced o form their own families for which they become silverbacks and take the full responsibilities of their started families.
If there is any activity that you can never miss, then its gorilla trekking in Uganda’s Bwindi impenetrable forest national park and Mgahinga forest national park, come and experience the peaceful norms of the great silverback gorillas in their troops, they are the true definition of leadership.
Conclusively therefore, a silverback is the dad to the family. Trek any gorilla family and witness the fatherhood of a silverback in terms of defense and care for his family members.
