Q 01/05

What is the leader of a gorilla troop called?

A) A silverback

B) A greyback

C) An alpha bull

D) A patriarch

Answer · why

A) A silverback

A silverback is named for the saddle of silver hair that comes with maturity, and he makes the troop's decisions: where it travels to feed, when it re...

Q 02/05

What is the scientific name of the gorilla subspecies that nearly all zoo gorillas belong to?

A) Gorilla beringei graueri

B) Gorilla gorilla diehli

C) Gorilla gorilla gorilla

D) Gorilla beringei beringei

Answer · why

C) Gorilla gorilla gorilla

Gorilla gorilla gorilla says one word three times because this was the kind first described, and the naming rules make that original population repeat...

Q 03/05

Which two animals are more closely related to humans than gorillas are?

A) Orangutans and gibbons

B) Baboons and macaques

C) Bonobos and chimpanzees

D) Lemurs and tarsiers

Answer · why

C) Bonobos and chimpanzees

Bonobos and chimpanzees are our closest living relatives, yet when the gorilla genome was read in 2012, about 15% of human DNA turned out to be closer...

Q 04/05

Gorillas hold which distinction among the primates?

A) The fastest on the ground

B) The largest alive today

C) The longest-lived

D) The only nocturnal apes

Answer · why

B) The largest alive today

The largest alive today, gorillas are nonetheless quiet, peaceful plant-eaters that live in close family groups, the opposite of the raging monsters t...

Q 05/05

What is the leading cause of death among adult gorillas living in zoos?

A) Tuberculosis

B) Heart disease

C) Pneumonia

D) Cancer

Answer · why

B) Heart disease

Heart disease is the biggest killer of adult gorillas in zoos, just as it is for people, even though zoo life lets them pass 50, against 35 to 40 year...