For the first time, gorillas in their natural habitat have been observed using tools in the forests of the Congo when they use a plank to test the depth of a pool of stagnant water and also to cross swampy areas.
For the first time, gorillas in their natural habitat have been observed using tools in the forests of the Congo when they use a plank to test the depth of a pool of stagnant water and also to cross swampy areas.
This phenomenon, which also exists among chimpanzees and orangutans, shows that this is an evolutionary development of the great apes and man.
The gorilla population is in danger of extinction and in the area examined in the Congo, which was once a center for many thousands of gorillas, there is a population of only a few hundred gorillas
"The study has been going on for ten years and we have two proven cases of tool use," says Thomas Brewer, from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) who is researching in the Republic of Congo. He adds: "What is amazing is the similarity between what these creatures do and what we do."
In the first case, we talked about a female gorilla crossing a pond while using a board to test the depth of the water and facilitate movement.
In the second case, a female gorilla was again seen picking up a bush branch and using it to search for food in the swamp. She then puts it down and uses it as a bridge. "The amazing thing is that it is similar to what we would do in similar cases," says Dr. Brewer, "in addition, they use tools not only to obtain food but also to facilitate their actions," he added.
In this, the gorillas join the chimpanzees who have been observed using stones to prepare their food, and their relatives, the bonobos, who have been observed using crushed rations of branches to absorb liquids. Orang-gutangs, the Asian great apes have been observed using branches to search for food and owners to improve their calls. Although both other apes and birds use tools, the great apes are specialists, and this study demonstrated that all great apes use tools.
