20×24 soft pastel on grey velvet paper. Original is available. As of 02-11-12, 618 views and 12 favorited.

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I got permission from the photographer for this one, because I fell in love with the position of all four “hands” and couldn’t resist her.. she has the wisdom of the ages in her eyes. Regrettably, she has since passed on.

The Western Gorilla (Gorilla gorilla), an African native, is the most populous species of the genus Gorilla. Nearly all of the individuals of this taxon belong to the Western Lowland Gorilla subspecies (G. g. gorilla) whose population is approximately 94,000 individuals. There are fewer than 300 of the only other Western Gorilla subspecies, the Cross River Gorilla (G. g. diehli). Wild western gorillas are known to use tools.

The World Conservation Union lists the Western Gorillia as critically endangered, the most severe denomination next to global extinction, on its 2007 Red List of Threatened Species. The Ebola virus is depleting Western Gorilla populations to a point where it might become impossible for them to recover. (information from Wikipedia)

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