Ford African Rain Forest

The Ford African Rain Forest is Zoo Atlanta's crown jewel — one of the premier gorilla habitats in the United States. Multiple family groups of Western lowland gorillas live in expansive naturalistic outdoor habitats with lush vegetation, climbing structures, and shaded retreats that support complex social dynamics and natural behaviors.

Western lowland gorillas are critically endangered, with wild populations declining due to poaching, disease, and habitat destruction from logging and mining. Zoo Atlanta's gorilla research program has produced decades of groundbreaking data on gorilla behavior, cognition, and communication that directly supports field conservation efforts in Central Africa.