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How Smart are Gorillas? Silverback gorilla inteligence
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How Smart are Gorillas? Silverback gorilla inteligence
The gaze of a gorilla is deep, vigilant, and also calm in a way that suggests some form of understanding. Empathy and awareness, both of which are tremendously rare in the animal kingdom, seem to converge within the essence of these animals.
For years, people have assumed that a gorilla’s intelligence was less developed than that of other animals. People believed that gorillas had the intellect of a primitive forest dweller who relied on instinct.” Any honest encounter with these animals would tell you otherwise.
Gorilla intelligence is multifaceted and differs from what we have been previously led to believe. The diverse social bonds that they embody, as well as tool making and elements of human language comprehension all speak to sophisticated forms of intelligence.
In this article, we’ll explore:
- The gorilla intelligence both in captivity and the wild
- Their methods of communicating, learning, and problem-solving
- The lessons brought forth about humanity through their intelligence
Through the past century, early explorers and colonial hunters painted a picture of gorillas that was in turn brutish and grotesque—describing them as savage man-beasts. This depiction found its way into Hollywood and was wildly popularized through adventurous films with terrifying apes or even the portrayal of King Kong.
Those stories, though, were our own fears and fantasies laid upon animals we barely grasped. In fact, gorillas are gentle, thoughtful creatures that have social lives as intricate as their great ape cousins, the chimpanzees and orangutans.
Researchers long term field studies in the 20th century such as Dian Fossey’s work with mountain gorillas uncovered a hidden world of intricate relationships and learning, emotions, and depth.
What Makes a Gorilla Smart?
Defining intelligence is not an easy feat, but scientists look to a particular set of traits, which include:
- Problem-solving ability
- Memory and learning
- Tool use
- Communication skills
- Self-awareness
Gorillas demonstrate all these traits to varying degrees.
Sign of Planning and Innovation: Tool Use
For a long time, people believed that only chimpanzees used tools. In 2005, however, wild gorillas were observed using sticks to test water depth and aid in crossing swampy terrain in the Republic of Congo.
Here are some of the examples:
Stick Test: A female gorilla broke a stick and used it to gauge the water’s depth before stepping in. Branch Balance: A female gorilla utilized a branch as a balance aid while traversing over a pool of water.
Food Processing: In zoos, gorillas can be observed using sticks to scrape food or to perform self-hygiene.
Such behaviors indicate that gorillas anticipate problems rather than react to them and, thus, solve them. To do this requires memory, planning, and the ability to visualize an outcome.
How Smart are Gorillas? Silverback gorilla inteligence Pictorial
Communication: More Than Grunts and Roars
Alongside vocalizations, they also communicate using:
Body Language
Chest-beating, which is often seen as aggressive, can also be a sign of playful excitement.
Gesture
Moreover, nurturing mothers and their babies exhibit coos and murmurs.
In addition to body language, gorillas also use signs and gestures to request for grooming, initiate play, or give movement directions.
Koko and Michael: Gorillas Learning Sign Language Koko, the most famous gorilla in the history, learned more than 1,000 signs in American Sign Language and understood spoken English.
Penny Patterson taught Koko sign language in the 70s and throughout the years, Koko used sign to express thoughts, request things, joke, and even describe emotions such as sadness and love.
Instances of Koko’s communication:
- When asked what she wanted for her birthday: “Red ball.”
- When her pet kitten died: “Sad. Bad. Trouble.”
- When researchers hid something: “You there fake.”
Another signing gorilla, Michael, described memories using sign language, including witnessing his mother die which is perhaps the most tragic memory imaginable.
While some scientists argue about whether the creatures can truly comprehend language, there is a broad consensus regarding their profound ability to think—something many would argue goes far beyond simple conditioning.
Memory and Learning
Gorillas possess advanced problem-solving skills, and a multitude of remarkable abilities in remembering things.
Social Memory:
They retain knowledge of individual troop members from many years prior. In the case of two groups’ encounters, silverbacks may remember former rivalries or alliances.
Spatial Memory:
Gorillas living in the wild move around in very large ranges of up to twenty-five square kilometers where locating certain places is vital, especially when it comes to accessing food and safe nesting spots.
Observational Learning:
Younger animals and infants observe their elders and imitate behaviors of foraging and constructing nests.
Emotions and Empathy
Researchers and caregivers document many other examples displaying emotional depth, which is one of the most striking indicators of intelligence in gorillas.
Grief:
Gorillas show signs of mourning when troop members die, remaining near the body for long periods of time. Mothers are seen holding deceased infants due to an unwillingness to release them.
Playfulness:
Young gorillas seem to invent their own games, chase one another, and literally burst into laughter. Breathy chuckles, common among gorillas, are part of their laughter, especially during playtime.
Gorilla intelligence displayed through empathy:
Koko, for instance, signed “sorry” to a caregiver she accidentally bit. Koko also had the habit of signing “sorry” to caregiver after minor conflicts.
Humans once believed these attributes were part of exclusively human nature, but these examples demonstrate they possess the capacity of feeling, caring and reflecting.
Self-Awareness
The popular “mirror test” is a simplistic test of self awareness, and is often a sign of intelligence. This test involves analysing whether the animal in question can recognize themselves in the mirror.
Though gorillas sometimes struggle with passing this test, some individuals, including Koko, have used mirrors to inspect and adjust their body parts suggesting self recognition.
It is reasonable to think that some level of self awareness exists in all gorillas, though such traits may not be uniform throughout the species.
Problem Solving and Innovation
Due to being kept in captivity, researchers have been surprised by what they have termed the creativity of these animals.
Problem Solving:
Gorillas have the capacity of learning to open hatches, levers and other devices which contain food.
Advanced Planning:
Some gorillas are capable of strategic behaviour. They can hide certain things and access them later, which demonstrates a higher level of intelligence.
Adaptation:
Gorillas in the wild adapt their food gathering and hunting to the season, precipitation, and to a stronger human presence.
These abilities strengthen the arguments that counter the idea of reasoning as instinct by demonstrating future planning.
Suggested Packages
How Does the Intelligence of Gorillas Compare with Other Primates?
In terms of cognitive skills, gorillas may not be far behind orangutans and are only outmatched by chimpanzees. They:
- Have the ability to comprehend cause and effect
- Retain memories of past events
- Occasionally utilize tools
- Establish intricate social bonds
Though gorillas are not as prolific tool users as chimpanzees, they do excel in emotional intelligence and social harmony. It appears that their intelligence is primarily focused on fostering and maintaining strong relationships and peace within the group, which is no easy accomplishment in the wild.
What We Learn From Gorillas
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this is the fact that we should not consider ranking gorilla IQ but rather reflecting on shared ancestry.
Gorillas’ DNA is 98% identical with ours. The roots of our empathy, curiosity, and social structures find their origins in ancestors we once shared.
Observing silverbacks comforting their injured troop members and young gorillas mimicking maternal behaviors reveal to us the evolutionary threads responsible for shaping our minds.
Conclusion
So what degree of intelligence do gorillas truly possess?
They are smart enough to:
- Solve problems and adapt creatively
- Understand elements of human language
- Communicate through gestures and vocalizations
- Form profound emotional bonds
- Plan for the future
In the case of gorillas, they are more than “big apes.” They are living, sentient, and intelligent beings that require both respect and protection.
If you are fortunate enough to gaze into a gorilla’s eyes, you would appreciate “the unmistakable spark of a mind at work.” That intelligence is not unique to humans but rather a shared inheritance gently woven into the hearts of our gentle cousins living in the misty forests.
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