# data[].attributes.body
Each day this Earth loses Mountain Gorillas to dangerous threats.

Each day the population of mountain gorillas decreases. The cause of these amazing creatures coming to an extinction is humans. The needs of the humans using more land to build is pushing these gorillas away to habitats they can’t withstand.

# data[].attributes.headline
What is so important about these animals?

# data[].attributes.subject
What is so important about these animals?

# data[].attributes.body
Gorillas play a very important roll just like other mammals do in the wild. These Gorillas help by spreading things around the wild like seeds, fertilizer, and etc.

# data[].attributes.body
Around 1,063 exist in the wild. ...

They live in two isolated groups. ...

We share around 98% of our DNA with gorillas. ...

They're one of the biggest, most powerful living primates. ...

They can eat all day long. ...

They cozy up at night. ...

They have 16 different types of call. ...

They live in family groups.

# data[].attributes.body
Mountain Gorilla´s diets mainly rely on vegetation in there habitats. Like... Bamboo, leaves, grass, and berries.

# data[].attributes.body
What, when, and why did these animal´s get on to the endangered list.

WHAT: The mountain gorilla is one of the two subspecies of the eastern gorilla. It is listed as endangered by the IUCN as of 2018.
WHEN:  These mountain gorillas were added to this list in the year of 2018
WHY: Studies were shown that less of these animals would appear in the wild and many were found dead. Scientist hosted many observations and realized that the numbers of these animal were decreasing by a lot.

# data[].attributes.body
The main reason these astounding creatures are going extinct is because of habitat loss. The wanting of humans to either own more land and build more is pushing these Gorillas away from there home. Sometimes these Gorillas have no where to go because everywhere else is not habitual for them. Another main reason these mammals are going extinct is disease and poaching. These are both a human caused issue. Diseased is spread from humans because human and gorillas are very similar organisms. These gorillas rarely have a strong enough immune system to survive so they usually don´t make it. Poaching, these certain animals are usually not targeted but still can get caught in these traps.

# data[].attributes.body
When assigned this project I knew I wanted to do an endangered species and Mountain gorillas just seemed the most interesting and valuable of my time. I love animals and also love gorillas and was sad to here when they were endangered.

# data[].attributes.body
By raising awareness and next time you want to build somewhere think of every organism that lives there and calls it there home!!!!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
As their name implies, mountain gorillas live in forests high in the mountains, at elevations of 8,000 to 13,000 feet. They have thicker fur, and more of it, compared to other great apes. The fur helps them to survive in a habitat where temperatures often drop below freezing. But as humans have moved more and more into the gorillas' territory, the gorillas have been pushed farther up into the mountains for longer periods, forcing them to endure dangerous and sometimes deadly conditions.

What might have been a bleak outlook for the subspecies just a couple of decades ago has brightened in recent years due to conservation efforts. Despite ongoing civil conflict, poaching and an encroaching human population, both populations of mountain gorillas have increased in numbers

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The critically endangered mountain gorilla population is threatened by habitat loss, poaching, disease and war. Learn more about what WWF is doing to protect its future, and how you can help.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
There are about a thousand mountain gorillas remaining on Earth, and about half live in the forests of the Virunga mountains in central Africa. Mountain gorillas are a subspecies of eastern gorilla ( Gorilla beringei). As their name hints, they live in the mountains at elevations between 8,000 and 13,000 feet.

These gorillas live on the green, volcanic slopes of Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo-areas that have seen much human violence from which the gorillas have not escaped unscathed. Habitat loss is a major threat: agriculture, illegal mining, and forest destruction for charcoal production have degraded their forests. They often get caught in snares laid out to trap other animals for bushmeat. Climate change also poses a threat: While gorillas are adaptive, moving to higher elevations to adapt to warmer temperatures, those areas are densely populated with little forest remaining. Catching illnesses from humans is also a threat. The majority of mountain gorillas are habituated to human presence because of the tourism industry, and while there are strict sanitation protocols in place and touching the gorillas is prohibited, disease could spread quickly.

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature, which sets the conservation status of species, changed their status from "crticially endangered" to "endangered" in 2008 as their numbers improved. Scientists, however, warn that they could quickly slip back into being critically endangered.

Alpha males and social behavior

To stay warm in the mountains, mountain gorillas have longer hair than their eastern lowland cousins, the Grauer's gorillas ( Gorilla beringei graueri). They also tend to be a bit larger than other gorillas and have shorter arms.

Gorillas can climb trees, but are usually found on the ground in communities of up to 30 individuals. These troops are organized according to fascinating social structures. Troops are led by one dominant, older adult male, often called a silverback because of the swath of silver hair that adorns his otherwise dark fur. Troops also include several other young males, some females, and their offspring.

The leader organizes troop activities like eating, nesting in leaves, and moving about in a home range of 0.75-to 16 square miles.

Those who challenge this alpha male are apt to be cowed by impressive shows of physical power. He may stand upright, throw things, make aggressive charges, and pound his huge chest while barking out powerful hoots or unleashing a frightening roar. Despite these displays and the animals' obvious physical power, gorillas are generally calm and nonaggressive unless they are disturbed.

In the thick forests of central and west Africa, troops find plentiful food for their vegetarian diet. They eat roots, shoots, fruit, wild celery, and tree bark and pulp.

Female gorillas give birth to one infant after a pregnancy of nearly nine months. Unlike their powerful parents, newborns are tiny-weighing four pounds-and able only to cling to their mothers' fur. These infants ride on their mothers' backs from the age of four months through the first two or three years of their lives.

Young gorillas, from three to six years old, remind human observers of children. Much of their day is spent in play, climbing trees, chasing one another, and swinging from branches.

In captivity, gorillas have displayed significant intelligence and have even learned simple human sign language.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
There are about a thousand mountain gorillas remaining on Earth, and about half live in the forests of the Virunga mountains in central Africa. Mountain gorillas are a subspecies of eastern gorilla ( Gorilla beringei). As their name hints, they live in the mountains at elevations between 8,000 and 13,000 feet.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The mountain gorilla is endangered by forest degradation and political instability. Learn how AWF secures mountain gorilla habitat to save endangered gorillas.