A good shot- again Djanghou, better than any I managed to get of him. Look at those very thickly haired arms, he is in tiptop condition. Did you notice how graceful and agile he is when he moves about too, almost like a ballet dancer....
A good shot- again Djanghou, better than any I managed to get of him. Look at those very thickly haired arms, he is in tiptop condition. Did you notice how graceful and agile he is when he moves about too, almost like a ballet dancer....
By chance I was there the day Djangou was moved between the two parks. i saw him being loaded into a van at port Lympne and later in the day, as a rather groggy young male exploring his new surroundings at Howletts. He was still quite small & nondescript then. I saw him again in 2006, nearly fully adult by then but still in the old cages where they are hard to see so well. He had matured a lot more by October last year and he is definately THE most impressive male at Howletts at present.
Its amazing how a big animal like that can move so gracefully. mind you, not all gorilla males move like that, some are rather less graceful than Djanghou is. Kifu is more bulky. Kouillou is smaller but handsome and with that 'redheaded' look.
Its amazing how a big animal like that can move so gracefully. mind you, not all gorilla males move like that, some are rather less graceful than Djanghou is. Kifu is more bulky. Kouillou is small and handsome.
I still say group(old fashioned!) but troop is equally correct.
Kolliou's group has always seemed to be the most active, I don't know why except Kouillou was handraised from an orphan baby and is very humanised, you often see him at the cage front blowing raspberries or relating to people, so maybe the group are out and about more because he interacts with visitors more than the other males. Djangou seems more typical, sits more in the centre area and largely ignores people(he was motherreared, as was Kifu)
Kijo on the other hand was almost invisible in recent years(he would usually sit in an area at the back where he couldn't be seen) except at feeding times.
The level of activity in the group depends partly on the number of young animals. In a few years time, I hope that Djanghou's group will have activity for this reason.
The level of activity in the group depends partly on the number of young animals. In a few years time, I hope that Djanghou's group will have activity for this reason.
The level of activity in the group depends partly on the number of young animals. In a few years time, I hope that Djanghou's group will have activity for this reason.
that's true also. Particularly the number of larger youngsters which are free of their mothers and interacting with each other.
but of the Kijo, Kifu and Kouillou groups, which all have a similar age structure, its still noticeable that Kouillou's seems the most active with all the females usually visible and foraging, and I always seem to spend more time watching them as a result.
Djanghou's group hasn't got any older youngsters yet but it will in due course.
