Are Gorillas afraid of Water?
Like the other apes and humans, gorillas cannot swim naturally, therefore
they avoid large bodies of water and rivers. However, in zoos and sometimes
even in the wild, young and adult animals like to play with water. In
search of food they sometimes wade through swamps on two legs with the
water reaching up to their waist.
If gorillas are surprised by a rain shower, they simply stay motionless
and wait for the rain to finish. If there is a cave or a similar shelter
close by, they will sit underneath, but they will never use large leaves
or branches to cover themselves, which is what bonobos and orang-utans
occasionally do.
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Gorilla in the rain
Photo:
Jörg Hess |