Why do mountain Gorillas beat their chests
Mountain gorilla are magnificent creatures belonging to the Eastern gorilla species .
There about 1063 gorilla members remaining in the wild with Bwindi having almost half of the gorilla population about 459 individuals.
Mountain gorillas Live in families of about 5 to 30 individuals headed by a dominant male called a silverback with responsibility of protecting the family , mating with females and deciding sleeping and feeding times.
Mountain Gorillas are also friendly herbivore apes with broad shoulders hands and fit and tiny eyes.
They live within forests and posses 98.3% genetic similarity to humans
Mountain Gorillas engage in vocal and non vocal modes of communication one of which is chest beating
Chest beating among mountain Gorillas is featured by a rhythmic pounding of their chests with cupped hands.
This action is commonly done by silverbacks
Therefore , there are different occasions under which a silverback can beat his chest which stand as a reason for the chest beating that include ;
Incase there is a young silverback trying to challenge them , a silverback beats his chest to send a sound warning to the black back or another silverback before an attack and in some cases the young one May retreat or carry on with the fight.
Chest beating is Also done to scare off the enemy and the enemy might either take it as a threat to back off or challenge leading to a fight .
Chest beating is also made to assert dominance since it comes as a powerful acoustic signal that can travel over considerable distances and portrays the silverbacks strength thereby deterring rivals and asserting authority
Chest beating is also done to attract potential mate since it acts as a signal for fitness and potential as a dominant males which gives the females signals to assess the suitability of the silverback for mating based on his size and vigor giving a one way ticket to mating and reproduction.
Chest beating is also done as a territorial defensive mechanism since it creates a loud and resonate sound that is heard over long distances thereby communicating territorial boundaries to other gorilla families and potential intruders.
Chest beating is also done as a means of social interaction among blackbacks since it stands as a way to practice and refine their social skills allowing them to receive feed backs from other members of the group thereby navigating social hierarchies and interactions.
Chest beating is also engaged in during play and development by infant and juvenile gorillas thereby allowing them to experiment their physical capabilities in a social context .
Conclusively, chest beating is a very important mode of communication with great leadership and social significance .
