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[Josh Greenman <joshg1973 AT yahoo.com>]

http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-zoo02.html

Zoo's gorillas fight for status after death of female 

May 2, 2005

BY ANDREW HERRMANN Staff Reporter 

The death of a female gorilla at Lincoln Park Zoo last week has set off 
changes in social
order, with a couple of the surviving creatures, as one expert put it, 
"throwing their
weight around.''

And with gorillas weighing several hundred pounds, that weight can be 
considerable.

Once was, zoo-kept gorillas lived alone or with a single member of the 
opposite sex.

But in 1970, Lincoln Park Zoo took the first gorilla born there, a female 
named Kumba,
and let her remain with her mother and later with other gorillas.

That direction better mimicked how gorillas live in the wild: in groups 
usually led by a
single male.

The death of a gorilla sets into motion a transformation of the group, a 
transformation
that unfolded last week at Lincoln Park with the death of Mumbali and the 
illness of her
sister, Rollie.

As their health failed, both of those gorillas were separated from the six 
other gorillas
they typically live with -- and for at least one, protected. Primate Curator 
Sue Margulis
said some of the "social dynamic changes'' have included aggressive behavior.

Shows of intimidation

Mumbali, 7, and Rollie, 9, were the human equivalent of pre-teens or 
teenagers. They
served as bodyguards of sorts for Mukari, a 20-something female.

Without Mukari's "muscle,'' two female adult gorillas, Bahati and Tabibu, 
have taken to
pushing Mukari from sitting in "positions of authority,'' said Margulis. The 
two are also
grabbing food treats from Mukari and are beating their chests or arrogantly 
staring at
her in a show of intimidation, said Margulis. The male leader, Jojo, has been 
impassively
taking it all in, said Margulis.

The aggressions are not necessarily dangerous, but officials are watching 
closely.

Depression is possible

Mumbali was euthanized by zoo officials after she fell into a coma-like 
state, possibly
from an infection. Experts tried antibiotics, blood transfusions and dialysis 
before
deciding last Thursday to end Mumbali's life. 

Zoo officials are monitoring Rollie, a constant companion of Mumbali, for 
changes that
could occur after the death of her sister. Lethargy and appetite loss, which 
animal
experts believe are signs of depression, are not uncommon among some members 
of a gorilla
group after one of its own dies.

Plans are to return Rollie to the group after she totally recovers.

Which may be none too soon for the beleaguered Mukari.