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| a gorilla works to break the snare spring |
Young mountain gorillas living in Rwanda have learned to disable snares set by bushmeat hunters. Field staff at
Diane Fossey Gorilla Fund have observed several young gorillas from Kuryama's clan destroying snares. Previously this behavior was known only amongst silverbacks. But time and evolution marches on, and with more traumatizing experience to their credit, the knowledge of how to deactivate a trip snare is passed on to younger generations of gorillas. Two juveniles and a blackback adult worked together to deactivate snares, demonstrating an impressive cognitive ability according to a field worker that observed them. Snares present an ever present danger to gorillas. Just a few days ago a juvenile female died from her infected rope wounds despite human intervention and veterinary treatment. Her's was the second death from entrapment this year. As the picture shows, humans and gorillas are doing their part to rid the park of snares.
