Why gorillas might be spending more time in trees than on land, new study reveals

Time of India

6 days ago

Researchers have discovered that gorillas spend more time in trees than previously assumed.
Western and Bwindi mountain gorillas in Gabon and Uganda found that even large males, weighing up to 170kg, used trees substantially.
Female gorillas spent significant time in trees, with Loango females spending 34% of their time and Bwindi females spending 21% in trees.
This challenges long-held ideas about gorilla behavior and evolution. The findings suggest that gorillas are more agile and adaptable than previously believed, and their tree-climbing habits play a crucial role in their daily lives. New insights into gorilla behavior.
The surprising tree habitats of gorillas
According to earth.com, a study published in
Current Biology
, encompassing data from five groups in Bwindi and one in Loango, totaling nearly 5,200 observation days, presents a different picture.
The Virunga population has significantly influenced our initial understanding of gorilla habitats, but these highland gorillas inhabit areas with limited fruit availability and tend to climb infrequently.
The findings indicate that tree use varies substantially between different gorilla populations. Notably, even juveniles and subadults in Bwindi and Loango spent between 32% to 43% of their time in trees, which is double the rate observed in younger gorillas in Virunga.
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Furthermore, the researchers discovered that while body size plays a role in tree climbing, it does not necessarily prevent it.
Gorilla tree climbing
is more than just about fruit
The researchers initially thought that fruit would be the primary reason for gorillas to climb trees. While they did find that gorillas climbed more when eating fruit, the reality was more complicated.
In Loango, adult females spent more time in trees eating leaves than fruit, whereas in Bwindi, the opposite was true.
Even large silverbacks climbed trees to eat fruit, with those in Bwindi spending 82% of their time in trees when consuming fruit.
However, fruit made up only 14% of their diet, indicating that most of their time was spent eating leaves. In contrast, western gorillas in Loango often ate fallen fruit from the ground, showing that fruit consumption doesn't always require climbing. Additionally, western gorillas ate a significant amount of tree leaves (about 30% of their diet), driving their tree use for folivorous purposes, similar to some monkey species.
Female gorillas climb trees primarily to feed
Gorillas mostly climbed trees to feed. Adult females were more likely to climb while eating than when resting or traveling. The frequency of climbing varied between Loango and Bwindi females, likely due to differences in diet and foraging strategies. Even when not eating fruit, Loango females climbed more than Bwindi females, suggesting that leaf-eating gorillas also spend significant time in trees. The energy gained from food seems to outweigh the effort of climbing, even for large silverbacks.
What gorilla tree climbing reveals about the evolution
These findings have significant implications for how we understand ape evolution. The idea that gorillas lived mostly on the ground from evolutionary historical roots with a herbivorous diet is no longer applicable. The study reveals that gorillas of all ages, from infants to adults, engage in frequent tree climbing. It shows that being big and eating plants doesn't mean gorillas can't climb trees often. This new perspective may require adjustments to our models of ancient human relatives, as gorilla-like features may not necessarily imply a solely ground-based lifestyle.
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