This date in 1932 saw the birth of Dian Fossey, US zoologist, leading authority on the mountain gorilla. To celebrate her birthday, here are 10 things you might not know about gorillas:
- The word gorilla was first recorded by Hanno the Navigator, a Carthaginian explorer on an expedition on the west African coast. He wrote that his company saw "savage people, the greater part of whom were women, whose bodies were hairy, and whom our interpreters called Gorillae". Whether they were gorillas or other apes, or indeed, savage people isn’t known. However, when missionary Thomas Staughton Savage and naturalist Jeffries Wyman first described the animals in 1847 they called them Troglodytes gorilla after the creatures in Hanno’s account.
- There are two species of gorilla – the Western Gorilla and the Eastern Gorilla. Each of these has two sub-species: the Western Gorilla (Gorilla gorilla) has the sub-species: Western Lowland Gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) and Cross River Gorilla (Gorilla gorilla diehli); the Eastern Gorilla (Gorilla beringei) has the sub-species: Mountain Gorilla (Gorilla beringei beringei) and Eastern Lowland Gorilla (Gorilla beringei graueri).
- Gorillas share between 95% and 99% of human DNA, so they can catch colds or flu from people.
- An average male mountain gorilla can weigh 180kg (about 30 stone), and measure 170cm (over 5’5”) tall.
- Gorillas live in groups called troops. Usually the group consists of one adult male, several females and some juveniles. Young gorillas, especially the males, will leave the group when they are about 8 years old and form new ones, either with migrating females or other young males, forming bachelor troops.
- An adult male gorilla is called a silverback, because from the age of about 12, an increase in testosterone causes the hair on its back to turn White. In a troop the silverback is the leader, deciding where the troop should go, where to look for food, mediating conflicts and taking responsibility for the safety of the group. If the troop is attacked by a predator a silverback will give his own life if need be. Younger males are called blackbacks.
- As humans have unique fingerprints, gorillas have unique noseprints.
- Gorillas build a nest to sleep in every night, using branches and vegetation. Young gorillas sleep in a nest with their mother until they are about three years old, when they start building their own.
- They are intelligent and use tools in the wild, such as using sticks to test the depth of water and rocks to open palm nuts. Gorillas in captivity have been taught basic sign language – the best known example being a female gorilla called Koko. They can laugh, and they can cry. They have been observed mourning for dead companions and covering their bodies with leaves. Some scientists believe they have spiritual or religious feelings.
- They are mostly herbivores, eating leaves, shoots, stems, and fruit but will also eat grubs, caterpillars, Snails, Termites and ants. They spend more than 50 % of their time feeding and foraging. Male gorillas can eat up to 30 kg of vegetation per day, and females can eat 18 kg.
New Year New Reading Challenge?
I can help. Here are links to books which meet potential criteria:
A title with three words
- Death and Faxes
- Killing Me Softly
- Settling the Score
- Secrets and Skies
- Over the Rainbow
- Closing the Circle
A title with six words
A book with a number in the title
A book with a colour in the title
Short story collections/A book with a green cover
A book published in the last year/during lockdown
A book you can finish in a day/A book under 200 pages
A book featuring characters from a deck of cards
A Book set during Christmas
A book with a place in the title
A Debut novel
A book with a plant or flower on the cover/A book about siblings
A book with a female villain or criminal
Includes space travel
Features Royalty
Books featuring skiing or snowboarding
A book with the Olympic games in it
A book with a bird in the title
A book featuring a secret society
A book featuring time travel/alternative dimensions
Raiders Trilogy:
Books featuring superheroes
Books featuring ghosts
From an Indie Publisher/Self published/An author you've not read before/A female author/A genre you wouldn't normally read/A book outside your comfort zone/A book by an author with your initials and your initials are JH
All of them!
More details can be found here
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