What is the largest living primate species?

The eastern gorilla is the largest living primate species. Its scientific name is Gorilla beringei, and the species includes the eastern lowland gorilla and the mountain gorilla.

Eastern gorillas are native to forests in central and eastern Africa. Eastern lowland gorillas, also called Grauer’s gorillas, are especially large; adult males can weigh roughly 150 to 209 kilograms in documented measurements. Mountain gorillas occupy higher-elevation forests and are best known from protected areas in Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

A common mix-up is answering “eastern lowland gorilla.” That is the largest subspecies, whereas “eastern gorilla” is the broader species-level answer used by this question. Gorillas are herbivorous great apes that live in social groups, but both eastern gorilla subspecies face severe threats from habitat loss, hunting, disease, and regional conflict.