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Intelligence

File:Gorilla skull 2Dmono.jpg

A gorilla skull (3D image available)

Gorillas are closely related to humans and are considered highly intelligent. A few individuals in captivity, such as Koko, have been taught a subset of sign language (see animal language for a discussion).

Natural tool use by all the "great apes"

The following observations were made by a team led by Thomas Breuer of the Wildlife Conservation Society in September 2005. Gorillas are now known to use tools in the wild. A female gorilla in the Nouabalé-Ndoki National Park in the Republic of Congo was recorded using a stick to gauge the depth of water whilst crossing a swamp. A second female was seen using a tree stump as a bridge and also as a support whilst fishing in the swamp. This means that all of the great apes are now known to use tools. [1].

In September of 2005, a two and a half year old gorilla in the Republic of Congo was discovered using rocks to smash open palm nuts. The old assumption that higher "animals", like gorillas, don't use tools, was wrong. (Sea otters use rocks on their chests to break sea urchins). Great apes are endowed with a semi-precision grip, and certainly have been able to use both simple tools and even weapons, by improvising a club from a convenient fallen branch. With training, in 20th Century carnival and circus acts , chimpanzees have been taught to operate simple motorbikes. A baboon in South Africa operated a remotely located railroad switch, to help his companion, a disabled rural rail junction master. [2].

See also

• List of apes — notable individual apes

External links

• Gorilla Haven - information about gorillas
• Gorillas Online - natural history, genetics, conservation and photos
• The Gorilla Foundation, home of Koko the gorilla famous for her sign language skills
• Tim Knight's Gorilla Gallery - gorilla pictures
• Primate Info Net Gorilla Factsheet - taxonomy, ecology, behavior and conservation
• San Diego Zoo Gorilla Factsheet - features a video and photos
• World Wildlife Fund: Gorillas - conservation, facts and photos
• Mountain Gorilla - and also a lot of facts about gorillas
• Gorillas at Prague Zoo - hit reality-tv show (24/7) of live gorillas at the Prague Zoo