So many people go to meet mountain gorillas in Africa nowadays but on very rare occasions, a gorilla charges at clients which turns out to be a big threat. So what do you do when a gorilla charges on you?
Some people think running is the solution. This is completely wrong! It will only make matters worse and besides, you can never run faster than a gorilla in its natural habitat.
Park rangers are always armed with guns to protect you but again, shooting a mountain gorilla dead is the last thing they would want to do. They will only resort to this if the situation at hand has failed to be settled.
When you book a Uganda gorilla trekking or Rwanda gorilla trekking tour, its the country’s obligation to protect you from any necessary harm that might arise from an encounter only that its rare to find a gorilla charging at a client.
Most of the gorilla families available for tracking are habituated. They are used to seeing humans and enjoy being around them.
But how dangerous are Silverback gorillas if encountered in the wild? The habituated ones possess no threat. Besides, you are only allowed to meet habituated gorillas which are very safe to visit.
So can a human survive an attack from a gorilla? in this article i show you how to survive a gorilla attack the right way without any party getting hurt.
How do gorillas charge?
A gorilla charges by thumping its chest multiple times, grunting loudly and releasing a very strong smell that can be smelt by humans from 26 yards away.
Their voices are usually loud and they will throw vegetation at you. When you see this happening, you know a gorilla is angry.
How to survive a gorilla attack
So how do we escape from an angry gorilla? What do you do when a gorilla attacks? Before i get into details, i will give you a brief insight about gorilla behavior.
Scientists proved that 99% of a gorilla’s charge are fake. They do this to give their families time to move to a safe place. If the oppression continues, a gorilla will go ahead and attack without fear.
So how do you survive an encounter with a wild adult gorilla? When a gorilla charges at you, do not fear. Just go ahead and do whatever i suggest below.
Study how the gorilla behaves. An angry gorilla will shout loudly, thump its check, thump the ground, throw vegetation at you and release a very strong odor. When a gorilla gets close to you without showing any of these signs, they are just curious and may be want to play with you.
Stay very calm and put. However much you are scared. Do not over react or scream as it will only worsen the situation. Stay as clam and quiet as possible.
Look away. Looking a gorilla straight in the eye is a sign of challenge. Try to look down and not look them in the eye until they get back to normal.
Groom the gorillas hands. When a gorilla holds your hands. Move your hand and begin grooming them. It will get them to relax more and their grip will become lose.
However threatening the situation might be, do not resist or try to fight back as it will vex the gorillas the more. These apes are extremely strong and very dangerous when threatened.
Try to be as submissive as you can as you wait for help to arrive or until the gorilla loses interest in harming you.
You should be scared by now. Its only normal to feel that way but it doesn’t mean a gorilla will charge at you always whenever you meet.
Such situations are very minimal and mainly occur to poachers or when you violate any of the gorilla trekking rules like what happened to the woman with the iPad.
