Wild Gorillas Impress With Their Tools

[apcmiller]

fatgav writes "The BBC is running an article about wild gorillas being seen to use tools in the wild. It is especially significant as not only have Gorillas never been seen to use tools, but they have been using them in a way unlike other great apes. From the article: 'The most astonishing thing is that we have observed them using tools not for obtaining food, but for postural support.' The scientists are getting excited as it can help to explain questions as to how the most advanced great ape (us) came to evolve."

http://rss.slashdot.org/Slashdot/slashdot?m=898

[Zeus_Hunt]

Just showing how close to Humans they are :ph34r:

[Samurai]

Wild gorillas have been spotted using sticks as tools for the first time, making scientists go bananas.

An ape has been pictured taking a branch to check the depth of a swampy area, while another digs for herbs with a stick.

Distant relatives of the gorilla, like chimpanzees, orang-utans and man, are known to use tools to overcome problems.

But the photographs prove gorillas also have the intelligence to do it.

Thomas Breuer, of the Wildlife Conservation Society, filmed the moment when the gorilla, nicknamed Leah, waded through the swamp.

Thrilled with the discovery, he said: "Tool use in wild apes provides us with valuable insights into the evolution of our own species."

All great apes use tools in captivity but only chimps and orang-utans employ them in the wild.

The Guardian said biologists thought gorillas did not equip themselves because they were strong enough to get food through brute force.

While chimps use stones to crack nuts and sticks to dig out termites, gorillas use their teeth and fists.

Source: Sky News RSS