National Geographic
In July 2012 trackers in Rwanda's Volcanoes National Park watched two young mountain gorillas find a poacher's snare and take it apart, then race to a second trap and dismantle that too. It happened days after a gorilla infant from a neighbouring group had died from snare wounds. Researchers at the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund's Karisoke Research Center said it was the first time they had seen juveniles do anything like it.
The story was widely retold as gorillas taking revenge on poachers. What the trackers actually saw is remarkable enough without that spin, and it says a lot about both gorilla intelligence and the threats the species still faces.
What the trackers saw
Karisoke staff patrol the forest every day looking for snares. On this occasion tracker John Ndayambaje spotted a trap very close to the Kuryama group and moved in to disarm it. The group's silverback, Vubu, grunted a warning, and Ndayambaje stepped back.
Before he could try again, two juveniles ran to the snare. Rwema, a male, jumped on the bent branch holding it under tension and snapped it, while Dukore, a female, worked the noose free. Both were about four years old. The pair then spotted a second snare that the tracker had missed and went straight for it, and a teenage gorilla named Tetero joined them to take that one apart as well.
Veronica Vecellio, Karisoke's gorilla programme coordinator, told National Geographic: "This is absolutely the first time that we've seen juveniles doing that." Because Karisoke holds one of the largest long-term records of wild gorilla behaviour, she said she would be very surprised if anyone else had seen it.
A close-up portrait of an adult gorilla, used here for illustration; it is not one of the Kuryama group gorillas seen dismantling snares. Young gorillas learn much of their behaviour by watching older members of their group.
How a snare works, and why it kills young gorillas
The traps are simple and brutally effective. A poacher ties a rope noose to a sapling or bamboo stalk, bends it down and holds it under tension with a small stick or stone, then hides the loop on the ground under leaves. When an animal knocks the trigger, the branch springs up and the noose tightens. A light animal can be jerked into the air.
The snares are set for antelope and other bushmeat, not for gorillas, and hunting of any kind is illegal in the park. But gorillas walk the same trails. Adults are usually strong enough to break free, though often with injuries to hands or feet. Infants and juveniles frequently are not.
That is what happened to Ngwino, a gorilla infant who died the week before the trackers' sighting. By the time she was found in a snare, it was too late. Struggling to escape had dislocated her shoulder, and the rope had cut deep into her leg, leading to gangrene. She died despite efforts to save her.
Learned behaviour or revenge?
It is tempting to read the juveniles' actions as grief turned into a mission. The evidence does not support that, and the researchers themselves did not claim it.
What can be said is that the young gorillas recognised a snare, knew which part to break and which part to pull, and did it quickly and together. Vecellio described them as very confident: "They saw what they had to do, they did it, and then they left." She suspected it was not the first time they had done it. Gorillas learn much of their behaviour by watching other members of their group,. Mike Cranfield of the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project suggested they may also have learned by watching trackers dismantle traps.
The timing after Ngwino's death is real, but there is no way to know whether the juveniles connected the two. Describing what they did, rather than assigning a motive, keeps the story accurate and still leaves it impressive. Cranfield summed up the hope many conservationists felt: "If we could get more of them doing it, it would be great."
Researchers also stressed that they could not, and would not, teach gorillas to do this. Interfering with natural behaviour is something field teams work hard to avoid.
Gorillas, tools and problem-solving
Great apes are known problem-solvers. Chimpanzees and orangutans use tools regularly in the wild, and wild gorillas, once thought to rarely use tools, have been seen using sticks to test the depth of water. The snare episode fits a broader picture of gorillas as observant animals that pass practical knowledge between generations.
It also shows how hard it is to separate learning from instinct in wild animals. One sighting cannot prove that a behaviour is spreading, which is why long-term studies like Karisoke's, running since Dian Fossey founded the centre in 1967, matter so much.
What has happened to mountain gorillas since
The news has been better than many feared. Fossey, who was murdered in Rwanda in 1985, predicted that mountain gorillas could be extinct by 2000. Instead their numbers have slowly climbed. In November 2018 the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) moved the subspecies from critically endangered to endangered, with just over 1,000 animals living in national parks in Rwanda, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. More recent estimates put the total at about 1,063.
The recovery has been driven by stronger park protection, daily anti-snare patrols, gorilla tourism that pays for rangers and gives local communities a stake in conservation, and veterinary teams from Gorilla Doctors who treat injured animals in the wild. Karisoke patrols alone remove roughly 1,000 snares a year.
The gorillas are still vulnerable. Their whole population is split between two small areas, so a disease outbreak, conflict or a rise in poaching could reverse the gains quickly. Human illnesses are a particular worry, since gorillas can catch many of them, which is why visitors must keep their distance.
How people can help
Most snares are set by people who live near the parks and need food or income, so the most effective conservation work includes them: jobs in tourism and patrols, alternative sources of protein and better health care. Reputable organisations such as the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund and Gorilla Doctors publish what they do with donations. If you visit, choose licensed operators, follow distance rules and stay home if you are ill.
For another story of people protecting vulnerable wildlife, see how Mexican marines protect sea turtle nesting beaches.
Sources: National Geographic, 19 July 2012; Christian Science Monitor (AP), 14 November 2018; Wikipedia: Mountain gorilla; Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund; Gorilla Doctors. Lead photo: National Geographic. Story first shared via True Activist.
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