Are Mountain Gorillas a Dangerous Species? Will they hurt me during the trek ?

Although dominant and very strong,  these  apes are gentle as well as shy, and in addition the mountain gorillas which visitors see within Uganda have been habituated.  In other words they are habituated to people, a process that takes close to 2 years.  Dian Fossey actually was against the idea of visiting mountain gorillas which is done today, however it is the money collected that supports survival of this endangered species and has seen their number increase over the recent years.

When mountain gorillas are threatened they do attack so as to protect their very own.  You will be advised on proper behavior around them to avoid this situation. When different Mountain Gorilla groups meet, there is a fight between the leaders and can lead to death.  Recently two Silverbacks fought within the Democratic Republic of Congo and the rangers had to intervene.