We’ve recently seen this short film that describes gorillas as 98.6% close to humans. While we can’t exactly say whether the number is accurate or not, it is undeniable that the genetic codes of many of the great apes (of which gorillas are only one of the family) are extremely similar to those of the human race, and it is in the slight differences between the genetic codes that make the great apes all vastly dissimilar to one another. The film follows a few families of gorillas and we think one thing is immediately striking, although gorillas are commonly depicted as aggressive and dangerous animals, this isn’t necessarily the whole pictures. In fact, sometimes human aggression can be a lot more scary and dangerous than gorilla aggression.
Admittedly, we haven’t seen any gorillas up close in the wild so we will have to fall back on the work of pioneers such as Dian Fossey and the many groups of conservationists and field biologists who spend a lot of their times with gorillas. It turns out that, in the wild, gorillas are remarkably social animals who are practically never violent with members of their own family or other species. The only times when gorillas get aggressive with one another is when there is competition between two families and the two dominant males of each family engage in a fight to the death. Although images of gorillas beating their chests and roaring are a part of our cultural memory, it should be pointed out that many of these are the gorilla’s way of intimidating any potential threats who intrude on their territory.
We’re definitely not suggesting that gorillas are OK and that you can go and start prodding them the next time you see a gorilla in the zoo! Animals in captivity very often display different behaviour from those in the wild (a point of contention for many animal rights activists) and can be more dangerous than they otherwise would be. However, we think this article should serve as a timely reminder that many in the animal kingdom are not naturally aggressive unless threatened, and that it is only the human species who can display the kind of willful and premeditated hostility that leads to so much pain and suffering in the world. We also hope that it serves as a reminder of some of the wonders of nature and the origins of the human species, and highlights the important work that conservationists and scientists do to ensure that these are never forgotten or lost.
