When you see the word gorilla, do you imagine a giant aggressive ape, something like King Kong?Well, you are correct in your imagination, King Kong is a gorilla. It is one of the most intelligent primates in the animal kingdom.Do you want to know more about King Kong? Like, are they really aggressive or friendly? Or how many times they beat their chests? As per Mr. Edward Wright of Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, chest beats from male gorillas creates the most iconic sounds from the animal kingdom.If you are looking for the answers to the above questions you are at the right place. In this article, we have answered many questions like why do mountain gorillas pound their chests? And how do they make such a loud sound while beating their chests? Is it good to beat chests in front of mountain gorillas? Research indicates that gorillas beat their chest to attract female attention. To know more fun facts about animals, you may also read why do peacocks spread their feathers and why do dogs drag their butts?Reasons Why Gorillas Beat Their ChestEveryone knows how much gorillas love to beat their chest. But not everyone knows why they do so. Some researchers conducted some experiments and research at Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda to find out the reason why male gorillas beat their chests. They also found that gorillas beat their chests only 1.6 times in 10 hours and do it to show their power and rank.One of the reasons found by researchers at the national park in Rwanda was that the sound indicated the size of the gorilla and its rank in the group. Experts also found that the adult male gorillas make a low sound and the juveniles make a slightly loud sound. This is similar to humans in a way that, you as a child make more noises in the house while your parents do everything with lesser noises. Also, the juvenile gorillas might make loud noises while beating their chests as a kind of fun.Also, there’s another reason behind a male gorilla’s chest-beating which is that they beat chests to attract female gorillas by showing their fighting ability. This finding was documented by Mr. Edward Wright from Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology. The larger males beat their chest to show the female gorilla how much they are interested in her. An adult male gorilla beats his chest more often than usual when a female gorilla is nearby.What does it mean when gorillas beat their chest?As per research, a male gorilla’s chest beat is an indication of his size and big air sacs. By beating chests harder, a gorilla is warning everyone. Whenever there is a fight, gorillas engage in chest-beating to avoid fighting by warning the others. This activity has been regarded as an impressive display by Edward Wright.According to researchers when a male gorilla is challenged by any other male gorilla, he beats his chest to dominate on the basis of his size and tries to avoid fighting by establishing his supremacy over the other. As gorillas are genetically very close to human beings, their behavior is also very similar to ours. As we don’t fight in the first instance and warn our rivals by using words, similarly gorillas also warn their rivals by their language of understanding, which is chest-beating. When a gorilla is angry he beats his chest, slaps the ground, and destroys the vegetation to express his anger.Why do gorillas make that sound when they beat their chest?A gorilla beats his chest for many reasons, and one of the reasons as explained by researchers at Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda is that it is a way of communication. They use the sound of chest-beating as a communication signal.Researchers also found that when mountain gorillas beat chests, it appears that they are using their fists to make loud noises. But in reality, they make the sound by beating their chest with cupped hands. Cupped hands amplify the sound and help them communicate even with the farther ones in a dense forest. When a gorilla beats his chest, this technique helps in locating his position by his group members. This helps juvenile gorillas very much, as they could communicate with their group and parents in case they get lost in the dense forests.Why do silverback gorillas beat their chest?A silverback gorilla is the dominant alpha male gorilla, and like other gorillas, silverback gorillas also beat their chests and the sound depends on their size. The reasons behind the chest-beating of a silverback gorilla are quite the same as other gorillas. They also beat their chests for communication, attracting female gorillas, and as a warning to other silverback gorillas.When a silverback gorilla beats his chest it is more likely that a young silverback gorilla has challenged him to fight and the big one beats his chest to dominate over the young one. And at this point, the young silverback gorilla could retreat, or they are going to fight.As a silverback gorilla is the alpha of their group, he has to lead the group and provide them directly to move. So a silverback gorilla also beats their chest as a signal to inform the group members to follow him while they are moving around.Is it safe to beat your chest in front of a gorilla?According to Mr. Wright, as an intelligent human being, you should not beat your chest in front of a gorilla. Beating your chest in front of a gorilla means you are challenging him to fight. Mountain gorillas are generally peace-loving animals unless they have been provoked. Once provoked, they are very aggressive types of apes and could kill a human being. So it is a wise choice, not to beat your chest in front of a gorilla.If you make a gorilla angry, he may tear off your clothes and destroy the surroundings to show his anger and to warn you that you still have time to back off. But if you keep beating your chest in front of him, he might think of it as a threatening challenge.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for why do gorillas beat their chest then why not take a look at why do tigers have stripes or gorilla facts?
When you see the word gorilla, do you imagine a giant aggressive ape, something like King Kong?
