mountain gorilla

[ moun-tn guh-ril-uh ]

noun

1. a bluish-black gorilla ( Gorilla beringei beringei ), a subspecies of the eastern gorilla, surviving in two small populations in national parks that cover mountainous regions of Uganda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Rwanda: a victim of illegal hunting, habitat destruction, and civil unrest, it is listed as critically endangered.

Word History and Origins

Origin of mountain gorilla¹

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

"If we can do a good job at protecting elephants, our efforts will reverberate to other species, such as lions and mountain gorillas."

From Science Daily

Uganda's first wildlife vet Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka works to save the country's endangered mountain gorillas, whose habitat is being eroded by climate change.

From BBC

Since 1950, temperatures in Uganda have risen at a rate of nearly a quarter of a degree Celsius per decade, leaving mountain gorillas struggling to quench their thirst.

From BBC

Ugandan officials said the army and the police were pursuing the militants who attacked the school toward the Virunga National Park, a thick forest that is home to endangered mountain gorillas.

From New York Times

But this tendency, seen across the animal kingdom, seems to have at least one exception: mountain gorillas.

From Scientific American