Are Gorillas Dangerous to Humans

Are Gorillas Dangerous? Gorillas are generally very gentle, shy and calm primates. They live peacefully within a group while in their natural habitats. The male silverback gorilla rarely charges. He leads his family with calmness, charisma and benevolence. You cannot say the same about other primates like chimpanzees where the dominant males are always kept on their guard by other stubborn members of the community. Despite their gentle nature, gorillas can become aggressive and dangerous when they feel threatened by intruders. Intruders could mean silverback gorillas from other groups, leopards or humans who appear aggressive. In the gorilla world, the male silverback gorillas are responsible for the safety and well-being of each member of the group. They determine, where to feed, what time to rest and have the sole right to mate with the female gorillas in the group. Each dominant silverback controls a particular territory that they guard against other gorilla families.

A silverback gorilla is large, very strong and a swift runner. He will stop at nothing to attack any creature that threatens his group using his long arms and sharp canine teeth. The silverback may seem calm but is always on high alert while leading his family out in the wild. As he feeds, he is always watching out for the young and for any possible threats that could either be physical or perceived. If he feels that his group is threatened by an intruder, the silverback will first attempt to warn the intruder through specific body actions or sounds. When two silverbacks from two different territories meet, they may fight each other. The defeated silverback risks losing his family /territory to the victorious opponent.

Are Gorillas Dangerous to humans?

Past studies have revealed that when wild gorillas are allowed to live their lives freely, enjoy their social structures and natural habitats, they are less aggressive even to humans. On the other hand, gorillas living under captivity/zoos are more dangerous and threatening because they aren’t given the freedom they desire. Gorillas in captivity interact more frequently with humans and get to teased/bullied even when their caretakers try to protect them. They are more unpredictable and aggressive. Because of their gentle nature, it is easier to habituate wild gorillas. Habituated wild gorillas are safer to be with than a gorilla in a zoo. Gorilla Habituation refers to controlled introduction of humans to gorilla groups in the wild. In other words, gorilla habituation is a gradual process of allowing gorillas to get accustomed to frequent human presence and even develop some sense of friendship with them. The success of gorilla habituation activities has enabled gorilla tourism in Africa.

What causes Gorilla Aggression?

As we mentioned earlier, gorillas are very calm primates who only become aggressive when provoked in one way or another. When provoked, a gorilla will exhibit behaviors to show distress and a body language which is usually intended to warn any enemy before it thinks of attacking. A Gorilla can be observed making low grunts while tearing down the vegetation around it. If their initial warning signs are ignored, they will rise up straight with their rear legs and pound their chests to show power before deciding to make the final attack. A gorilla will become aggressive when the following happens: –

Attacks and intrusion from other gorilla groups: Gorilla families leave in their own territories and avoid other groups. However, they are bound to encounter other gorilla groups or lone silverbacks at some point. When this happens, it could lead to fights as the dominant male stamps his authority. A fight will almost always occur when a silverback tries to steal a female gorilla from another family. These fights can be deadly and cause a change in leadership of a particular gorilla group.

Prolonged absence of human exposure: Habituated gorillas are receptive to humans thus encouraging tourists to visit them in the jungles. However, when left alone or without frequent visitors, they could return back to their complete wild state. When this happens, they could become aggressive towards humans. This was a major concern during the covid 19 knockdown. Tourists stopped going to the gorilla parks for some time. To prevent the gorillas from forgetting their past exposure to humans, additional game Rangers were deployed in the gorilla parks to watch over the primates and continue visiting them on a daily basis until the parks were reopened for tourism.

Direct eye contact with the gorillas: Gorillas are naturally shy and calm primates. This could tempt visitors into trying to develop a close relationship with them. However, it is important to always keep in mind that they are still wild animals. Whereas humans consider direct eye contact a positive sign during interaction, gorillas may think otherwise. They may get irritated and uncomfortable when looked at directly in the eye. Travelers should therefore avoid direct eye contact because gorillas may interpret it as attempting to challenge them. It is the same trick they use to express dominance or when challenging other members of their kind. To avoid aggression, you should avoid giving then the perception that you are looking at them directly. Look in the space or trees and try to act submissive.

Wearing clothes with bright colors: Bright colored clothes may catch the attention of gorillas. They could cause gorillas to become suspicious of the person wearing them in their territories. They may want to know or start probing why the individual showed up dressed like that. To avoid unwanted attention and aggressive behaviors from gorillas, it’s recommended that you dress up in dull-colored clothes. Clothes that blend well with the vegetation ensure that you don’t attract any unnecessary attention.

Touching Gorillas: Gorillas don’t like being touched by strangers and will perceive it as a threat leading to aggressive behavior. Touching a baby gorilla can seem fun but Travelers are warned against it however tempting it is. The dominant silverback is always on the lookout for his offspring and will charge if he observes you touching his babies. The mother gorilla may be even more aggressive. Always make sure to give gorillas a distance of at least 7m and avoid blocking their path. Gorillas don’t like to be surrounded by many people without clear gaps for them to move about as they feed. If you surround them completely while taking photos/videos, they could start to feel threatened. It is why gorilla trekking is limited to only 8 people per day for each gorilla group.

Using flash photo cameras: As already noted earlier, gorillas are generally shy primates. They will start to feel insecure when photographed using flash lights. The flash lights may eventually provoke them into charging at a photographer. It’s therefore recommended that you disable flash lights from your camera whenever taking photos of wild gorillas.

How to act when a gorilla becomes aggressive

Gorillas become aggressive and charge when they find themselves in uncomfortable situations. When a gorilla charges, it can be very scary especially to tourists who may not be familiar with them. However, when you do the following simple things, you will be able to manage the awkward situation.

Stay Calm: This may seem unpractical given the sheer size and loud bark of a gorilla. However, it’s the most effective thing to do because gorillas will perceive your calmness as a sign that you mean no harm. Do not look at them but rather into the space or trees while staying alert to their movement. Someone could be tempted to run, but such moves will only worsen the situation because it gives them more reason to attack. Why are you running away if you are innocent? Acting submissive will make the gorilla lose interest quickly and move on like nothing happened.

Follow Instructions from the Park Wardens, Rangers and Guides: Make sure that you adhere to instructions given to you during the briefing for gorilla trekking. When a gorilla charges, the Park officials will guide you on how to act while he/she deals with the primate. The Ranger/Guide will try to shift the attention of the gorilla away from the visitors. This strategy almost always works. If the gorilla continues to act aggressive, the Ranger may shoot in the air to scare it away. This extreme measure is always the last resort and is almost never implemented because gorillas are easily manageable compared to other wild creatures.