Gorilla vs Chimpanzee: What’s the Difference?
The main difference between gorillas and chimpanzees is that gorillas are much larger, mostly plant-eating apes that live in stable family groups led by a silverback, while chimpanzees are smaller, omnivorous and live in large, shifting communities. Chimpanzees hunt, make a wide range of tools and are more excitable. They are also more closely related to humans than to gorillas.
| Western Gorilla | Chimpanzee | |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific name | Gorilla gorilla | Pan troglodytes |
| Lifespan | 35–40 years in the wild | 30–40 years in the wild, for animals that reach adulthood |
| Weight | 68–180 kg (150–400 lb) | 27–70 kg (60–155 lb) |
| Size | 1.2–1.8 m (4–6 ft) (height) | 1.2–1.5 m (4–5 ft) (height) |
| Top speed | 32–40 km/h (20–25 mph) | about 40 km/h (25 mph) |
| Gestation / incubation | about 8.5 months (257 days) | about 230 days (7.5–8 months) |
| Diet | Herbivore | Omnivore |
| Family | Hominidae | Hominidae |
| Habitat | Lowland rainforest, Swamp forest, Secondary forest, Montane forest | Tropical rainforest, Montane forest, Woodland, Savanna-forest mosaic |
| IUCN status | Critically Endangered | Endangered |
Figures shown are for the western gorilla (Gorilla gorilla) and the chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes).
Key differences
Size and build
Gorillas are the largest living primates. An adult male is several times heavier than a male chimpanzee, with a broad chest, massive arms, a tall bony crest on the skull and, once mature, a saddle of silver hair across the back. Chimpanzees are leaner and more agile, with proportionally larger ears and a lighter, pinkish-to-black face.
Diet
Gorillas are primarily vegetarians, eating leaves, stems, shoots, bark and fruit, plus some ants and termites; their large belly houses the gut needed to ferment that bulk. Chimpanzees prefer ripe fruit but are true omnivores. They eat insects, eggs and honey, and they hunt mammals cooperatively, especially colobus monkeys.
Social structure
A gorilla troop is a cohesive family: typically one dominant silverback, several females and their young, all traveling together. Chimpanzees live in communities that can exceed a hundred members, dominated by a hierarchy of males. The community splits into small, changing parties through the day, an arrangement known as fission–fusion.
Tool use
Chimpanzees are the most accomplished tool users among non-human animals. They strip twigs to fish for termites, crack nuts with stone hammers, sponge up water with chewed leaves and pass these local traditions on. Wild gorillas use tools only rarely; one was observed testing water depth with a stick.
Temperament
Despite their power, gorillas are generally calm. A silverback's chest-beating charge is usually a bluff meant to avoid a real fight. Chimpanzees are more volatile. Males compete intensely for rank, patrol territory borders in groups and sometimes kill members of neighboring communities, behavior documented at several long-term research sites.
Nests and movement
Both build a fresh sleeping nest each evening. Adult gorillas, especially heavy males, usually nest on the ground, and they spend most of the day there too. Chimpanzees nest in trees and climb far more, feeding high in the canopy, though both apes travel on the ground by knuckle-walking.
How to tell them apart
- Size is the first clue. An adult gorilla is massively built; a chimpanzee is closer to human body size.
- A silver-gray saddle on the back identifies an adult male gorilla.
- Chimpanzees have large ears that stick out; gorilla ears are small and close to the head.
- Gorillas have wide, flared nostrils and a heavy brow, and each individual's nose print is unique.
- An ape using a stick or stone as a tool is almost certainly a chimpanzee.
What they have in common
Gorillas and chimpanzees are African great apes in the family Hominidae, the same family as humans, and neither has a tail. Both knuckle-walk, build nests, recognize themselves in mirrors, and have long childhoods with close bonds between mothers and infants. Both live in the forests of equatorial Africa, where the western gorilla's range overlaps with the chimpanzee's, and both are declining.
Frequently asked questions
Who would win a fight, a gorilla or a chimpanzee?
A gorilla would have an overwhelming advantage. An adult silverback is several times heavier than a chimpanzee, with far greater strength and a powerful bite. Where the two species share forest, they usually ignore each other, although researchers in Gabon have recorded groups of chimpanzees attacking gorillas and killing infants.
Which is more closely related to humans?
Chimpanzees are. Chimpanzees and bonobos are our closest living relatives, sharing a common ancestor with humans about six to seven million years ago. The gorilla lineage branched off earlier. This means a chimpanzee is genetically closer to a human than it is to a gorilla.
Are gorillas or chimpanzees more dangerous?
Chimpanzees are generally considered more dangerous to people. They are excitable, extremely strong for their size, and captive chimpanzees have caused severe injuries. Gorillas are more placid and usually warn before charging. Both are powerful wild animals, and neither should ever be kept as a pet.
Can gorillas and chimpanzees interbreed?
No. Gorillas and chimpanzees belong to different genera whose lineages split roughly eight to ten million years ago. There are no verified hybrids. Old reports of a 'koolakamba,' a supposed gorilla–chimpanzee cross, have never been supported by genetic evidence.