The strongest gorilla. Superhuman strength and power of primates
How much stronger is a monkey than a human, what kind of force are gorillas capable of developing, what are primates capable of. Many people have asked these questions. Here is a translation of one article on this topic. One of the famous primatologists answers the questions.
Expert: Fady D. Isho - 7/27/2008
QUESTION: You recently answered a question about strength great apes and claimed that a male chimpanzee is on average 5 times stronger than an adult male, and a male orangutan or gorilla is up to 10 times stronger, etc.
My question is: How was this force measured? As an athlete, this is very interesting to me. Was one-arm pull strength, arm strength, and grip strength measured, all together—or something else? Was some other device used?
I ask these questions because I know some very strong people, and it is unlikely that the legs of a primate stronger than legs the legs of some of these fellows (they leg press weights over 2,000 pounds). And it's kind of hard to believe that a 120-pound chimpanzee could have the strength of 5 men on the bench press, for example. The world record bench press is roughly around 800 pounds, which means a 120 pound chimpanzee would be able to bench press 4,000 pounds (which is close to 2 tons, or 33 1/3 times its body weight). This seems unlikely.
Even if we compare with average men with an average level of training. Many of them can shake at least own weight, but it's a pushing motion, not a pulling force, which I suspect primates are monstrously strong at.
However, even if compared to the average athlete, that means a 120 lb chimpanzee would have to bench press 600 lbs since he is 5 times stronger than a human.
That's why I ask how this difference in strength was measured and determined.
Thank you in advance for any answer you may have.
ANSWER: Hi Jim
I understand your curiosity, let me explain. Many people have no idea about power (or power). WITH scientific point In terms of perspective, it can be measured as work per time (work done per unit of time; power = work/time).
For example, if a person is moving a 200-pound load certain distance in twenty seconds, and a chimpanzee does it in four seconds, it can be assumed that a chimpanzee is five times more powerful than a human in this matter.
Let me point out that today there is no universal way to compare a person with an adult chimpanzee, orangutan, or gorilla. An experiment conducted at the Bronx Zoo in 1924 compared the strength of a 165-pound adult human and a 165-pound male chimpanzee named “Boma,” as well as a 135-pound female chimpanzee, Suzette.
They competed to see how much weight a man and a monkey could pull with one hand. A grown man managed to pull a maximum of 200 pounds. The male chimpanzee, in turn, pulled 847 pounds with one hand, and the female chimpanzee 1,260 pounds.
You see that our brothers, the smaller monkeys, can easily make the strongest person like a hot water bottle. At one of the exhibitions, an orangutan threw his hand at a log that was in his way, with which four or five people had previously struggled in vain, trying to move it.
In terms of animal strength, the strength of a wild chimpanzee is equivalent to the strength of 4 to 7 adult men, more like 5 adult men.
The strength of an orangutan is equal to that of 5 - 8 adult males, approximately 7 adult males.
A gorilla has the strength of 9 to 12 adult men, that is approximately 11.
These estimates are made based on real action which these animals performed. If you knew monkeys as well as I do, I am sure you would not doubt their capabilities.
Best wishes,
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QUESTION: Dear Fady D. Isho,
Thank you for the information, very interesting and valuable!
Yes, I'm familiar with the difference between power and strength. Force is basically a measure of short-term force that can be applied or exerted on an object - while power is more the amount of force that can be developed by transferring weight over a distance or in some other way in a unit of time.
However, the comparison in traction you refer to (this does not imply that I doubt what you say) appears to violate the laws of physics. For an organism (body) weighing 135 pounds to pull 9 times its own weight, there must be some permanent basis levers to pull the weight rather than move towards it.
Considering that the friction of the surface on which the chimpanzee's body is located and the weight are the same - it is physically impossible for a chimpanzee to move the weight (a monkey would rather pull itself towards the weight) - unless there is some fixed base, leaning against which the chimpanzee could place itself against the force of tension .
It's the same with pushing. The old Superman comic broke the laws of physics when a 200 (+/-) pound man stopped or pushed a multi-ton truck while on the same frictionless surface (asphalt). The laws of physics are completely ignored here.
That's why it's hard to believe that a chimpanzee is able to pull more than its own weight across a surface with equal friction between both masses. Is it possible (from personal experience), if a person has the opportunity to fix his position with the help of a strong stationary support, a tree, a rock, or railroad sleepers, from which he can push off.
The best example of this is how a 250 pound man pulls a locomotive. He can do this only because there is a difference in friction (a locomotive is on wheels, a person can use sleepers as a fixed support). Once the inertia is overcome, the locomotive, weighing many times more than a person, begins to move. A person only needs to overcome inertia to get him off the ground.
In general, it would be interesting to know what was used as a base in primate strength tests. Or it was simply the strength of the hand, grip, and traction that were measured.
Another related question arises. Monkeys can use both arms and legs to move, like four-legged animals. This gives them every pound of advantage over humans. Isn't this what gives them the main advantages, since they can involve in the effort larger number muscles, which in cross section will be larger than that of a person.
Another important possibility should be considered: Adrenaline (aka the “anger” or “extreme” factor). This is what allows a 110 pound woman to lift a car while saving her son (documented case).
Therefore, please explain, maybe some kind of irritant was used to outrage and anger the animal to stimulate the adrenaline factor? In other words, was some kind of stimulus used? After all, the person, naturally, did not have such an advantage that could affect the test result.
Thank you very much! Waiting for an answer.
Answer
Hello Jim
The male chimpanzee stood with his feet on the base, the female did not.
All your statements are correct. Without support from a stationary object or a surface with a higher coefficient of friction, the body under test will simply slide towards the load. But when there is more than enough force to move an object, the object begins to move along the direction of the force. (Through a jerk).
And since chimpanzees' bones are denser than humans', and their muscles are more developed, they are able to move heavier weights.
There have also been reports of felines testing the strength of pulling loads more than five times their body weight, just as chimpanzees are able to do this effectively.
The monkey makes a sumo wrestler like a hot water bottle. Interesting video, a sumo wrestler competes with an orangutan in a tug of war. Can you imagine what would happen if it was a gorilla?
Ants are not only hardworking, but also strong... Photo: http://rumbur.ru
Just recently we told you that the most strong insects On our planet, scientists have recognized the dung beetle Onthophagus taurus. The beetle Onthophagus Taurus is capable of developing huge physical strength and is capable of lifting a load equivalent to more than 1,100 times the beetle's own weight. But there are other powerful creatures on this planet that can surprise us with their records...
In our today's photo fact, we present to you the ten most powerful creatures on the planet in strength-to-weight ratio. These animals (and others) can lift 1000 times their own weight!
1. Oribatid mites. The most strong creature on Earth (in strength-to-weight ratio) are oribatid mites, which can be found in your nearest garden. This tiny creature can support 1,180 times its own weight. It's the same as if a person could lift 82 tons. (shane58):
2. Dung-beetle. This bug can lift the equivalent weight of six double-decker buses, or 1,141 times more own weight. Dung beetles vary greatly in size, from 1 mm to 6 cm in length. Scarab is a type that makes up 10% of all beetles. He was worshiped by the ancient Egyptians that his activity (when he rolled balls of dung) was the personification of the movement of the sun. (Arno & Louise):
3. Leaf-cutter ant. The jaws of this insect can bite off part of a leaf whose weight is 50 times more weight their bodies. It’s the same as if a person lifted an object weighing 2.5 tons. These insects have some of the most difficult relationships in the world - each group is responsible for a specific process:
4. Gorilla. A gorilla can lift 10 times its own weight. Males reach 1.75 m in height and weigh up to 200 kg. Females are almost half the size. Gorillas live up to 50 years. The word "gorilla" comes from the Greek "gorillai", which means "tribe of hairy women". Like humans, gorillas have individual fingerprints. (S@ilor):
5. African crowned eagle. The first - and only - bird on the list of the ten most powerful animals. In flight, it can carry prey weighing up to 16 kg, that is, four times its own weight. It's powerful and aggressive predator, killing monkeys and even small antelopes. Its wingspan is almost 2 meters. It can take five months to build its huge nest, but only mates once every two years. (Lightning Bug Creek):
6 people. We reached the sixth step of this “strongest” hit parade thanks to Žydrunas Savickas, the strongest man in the world, who can lift twice his own weight. Savickas is 34 years old and 1.9 meters tall:
7. Tigers. They can bear a weight twice their own - about 540 kg. The average length of a tiger from nose to tip of tail is 3.3 meters, weight is 300 kg. And despite their weight and size, they can reach speeds of up to 64 km/h. A tiger's paw is powerful enough to crush a cow's skull. (anmichaelthomas):
8. Elephants. They can lift different weights, and they themselves are not lightweight. They can lift up to 9 tons, which is 1.7 times their weight own body. This largest mammals on earth, they live up to 70 years. The largest elephant in history he was 4.2 meters tall. At birth they weigh 120 kg. (Paraflyer):
9. Oxen. An ox can handle a weight one and a half times its own - about 900 kg. Typically, oxen are used only for pulling heavy objects. They are usually combined in pairs. (alber):
10. Grizzly. At birth, a grizzly bear weighs only 0.5 kg, and at maturity it already weighs 550 kg. Standing on its hind legs, the grizzly reaches almost 2.5 meters in height. They can run at a speed of 54 km/h, but they run faster uphill than downhill due to the distribution of muscles. In the wild, grizzly bears live up to 30 years. (Stephen Oaks):
Evolutionists believed that the DNA of chimpanzees and humans is 98% identical. Researcher Roy Brittain proved in 2011 that the similarity is 95%. Gorillas demonstrate a similar indicator. According to the classification, they belong to the hominid family, like humans. Isn't this a reason to get to know primates better?
Selection interesting facts Let's start with a sad note about gorillas: the species is on the verge of extinction. Last September, scientists published the results of their calculations. Over 20 years, the populations of 2 species and 2 subspecies have decreased by more than 70%. Total number- less than five thousand individuals. The reason is poaching and climate change.
Power and harmlessness
In 480, the sailor Hanno stopped in Morocco. He described meeting "hairy women," calling them Gorillai. In 1847, the term was picked up by Thomas Savage. While traveling in the Congo, the missionary found the skull of a monkey-like animal. His story about the discovery was so vivid that it later turned the image of the gorilla into the most terrible creature.
The most big gorillas in the world live in Virunga - national park Congo. Individuals of the mountain representatives of the genus reach 190 cm in height and weigh up to 280 kg. These are entire populations that show hope of spreading.
A million years ago, Gigantopithecus inhabited China, Thailand and India. Their weight exceeded half a ton and their length was 3 meters. The remains were discovered in India in 1935.
The average dimensions of modern animals are slightly inferior to their ancestors. The height of an adult male is 165 – 175 cm, less often – 200 cm. Weight varies from 135 to 250 kg. Females are approximately half the size. The body is uniformly massive, physically developed, muscles are visible.
Strength of a gorilla compared to a human is 11 to 1. But the power of the beast is combined with peacefulness and shyness. Monkeys are calm family life. They rarely fight even among themselves. During a nervous outburst they stand on hind legs, and the front ones beat themselves in the chest, emitting a loud roar. This exposes large teeth. After the demonstration, the rebel calms down. Who do you think is stronger, gorilla or bear? Write in the comments.
The diet of apes consists of plant foods, insects and beetles. Additionally they use minerals, such as clay. Males are able to eat about 35 kg, females - up to 18 kg of vegetation per day.
Relation degree
At the beginning of the article, the similarity of human and primate genes was already noted. Do you know why the gorilla big nostrils? The reason lies in the banal habit of picking your nose. Animals are similar to us not only in genotype, but also in appearance and habits.
Just look at the monkey to notice common features. The number of incisors, canines, and molars coincides. The front paws have 10 toes with nails instead of claws. It is interesting that when moving, anthropoids clench their fists. The rest of the fauna rest on pillows. This feature is caused by the desire to preserve the skin of the palms intact.
If you look deep into the body, you will discover an identical structure of all organ systems. There are differences in the number of chromosomes. Gorilla cells have 48 chromosomes, humans have 23 pairs or 46 chromosomes.
The main common features of humans and gorilla are identified:
- Expression of basic feelings;
- developed memory;
- attitude towards children - care may be accompanied by reproach;
- presence of psyche;
- diseases.
Main differences:
- Hair level;
- form of communication – linguistic in humans versus gestures and sounds in animals ();
- thinking - a person is able to change the focus of attention at will. Gorillas tend to focus on only one action;
- The volume of the human brain is 1600 cm 3, of monkeys - 600 cm 3.
They enter the ring
It’s interesting that if animals clash in a duel, a gorilla or a lion, who will be stronger? IN natural conditions they will never meet; workers at zoos will not allow them to meet. The only time these giants fought was recorded on a computer monitor.
This situation was simulated by programmers and a group of zoologists. The gorilla defeated the king of beasts with his ingenuity. A number of parameters were taken into account: endurance, bite and strike force, size, running speed, weight and intelligence.
Intelligence is difficult to determine in an animal. Eat unique example gorilla Koko. Scientists from Stanford worked with her. They were able to develop the primate’s IQ to 75. A lion will definitely not achieve such results. Interestingly, primates often defend themselves against leopards and defeat them thanks to their intelligence.
Considering how many times, the gorilla stronger than man, there is hardly anyone willing to fight her. Athlete Kirill Sarychev lifts a barbell weighing 335 kg, which is 2 times higher than his own weight of 170 kg. This is a world record. The man's height is almost 2m.
This is a serious indicator for a person, but can he compare with a primate? Force can be identified with work done per unit of time. For example, a person moves a load of nth mass in 55 seconds, and a gorilla does it in 5. This is the only way to show that the primate is 11 times stronger.
Man turns out to be one of the few species of animals whose muscles use a weaker, but at the same time more resilient model of contractile protein.
Chimpanzees seem to us much stronger than people - of course, wild animal the same size as us. Actually, they not only seem: the average monkey is actually stronger than the average person. But much – how much?
For a long time it was believed that the strength of chimpanzees is several times greater than that of humans - but here, apparently, we are dealing with literary and artistic exaggeration: when Brian Umberger ( Brian R. Umberger) from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and his colleagues from several scientific centers The USA analyzed scientific data on this topic, it turned out that chimpanzees are stronger than humans in best case scenario only one and a half times.
But why are they stronger? To understand the issue, the researchers decided to directly compare how muscle fibers work in chimpanzees and humans. Fiber samples were biopsied from the calf and thigh muscles of several monkeys - and it turned out that in both humans and chimpanzees, individual muscle fibers develop approximately the same force. It became clear that in order to understand why chimpanzees are stronger than humans, it is necessary to analyze the structure of muscle fibers at the level of molecules and cells.
As you know, muscles contract thanks to a special protein called myosin, which forms long contractile filaments. We will not describe in detail the mechanism of muscle contraction; we will only say that among the myosin filaments working in muscles, there are fast and slow filaments. How they differ is clear: fast myosin provides faster and stronger muscle contraction than slow myosin. But fast myosin also gets tired faster - that is, you have to pay for speed and strength with endurance.
According to the authors of the work, fast myosin is more in demand simply because for most animals it is important that their muscles work quickly and efficiently. greatest strength. If we talk about a chimpanzee, then if he wants to pick up a stone and hit a nut with it, or decide to climb a tree, with fast myosin he can do all this faster and more efficiently.
For humans, as evolution progressed, endurance came first: in order to hunt, or simply to collect some kind of food, people had to overcome enormous distances, and those whose muscles for a long time didn't get tired. In addition, hardy slow myosin uses less energy than fast myosin, so the saved resources could be used for brain development and maintenance. (By the way, we already wrote about the fact that the human brain could .)
However, some experts believe that we do not yet have enough data to make any evolutionary conclusions regarding fast and slow myosin. Firstly, we don’t know what kind of myosin was in the muscles of human ancestors, and secondly, now in the experiment we used muscle fibers only from the hind limbs of chimpanzees, so it was good to also analyze the muscles of the arms, and not only in chimpanzees, but also in other great apes.
Gorilla is an animal belonging to the genus of monkeys, which includes the largest and most modern representatives of the order of primates. The first description of this species was given by a missionary from America, Thomas Savage.
Biological description and characteristics
Adult males are very large animals, and their height is natural environment habitat, as a rule, is 170-175 cm, but sometimes taller individuals with a height of two meters or more are found. The shoulder width of an adult animal varies within a meter. The average body weight of males is within three hundred kilograms, and the weight of females is much less and rarely exceeds 150 kg.
This is interesting! To get yourself sufficient quantity food, gorillas use very strong upper limbs, the muscles on which are six times stronger than the muscular strength of any average person.
The primate has a massive build and also has strong and well-developed muscles.. The body is covered with dark and fairly thick hair. Adult males are distinguished by the presence of a clearly visible silver stripe on their back. Primates of this species are characterized by a pronounced protruding eyebrow. The head is quite large in size and has a low forehead. A special feature is the massive and protruding jaw, as well as a powerful supraorbital ridge. On the top of the head there is a kind of pillow, which is formed by a leathery thickening and connective tissue.
This is interesting! The gorilla's body has a characteristic shape: the width of the abdomen exceeds the width of the chest, which is due to its large size digestive system, necessary for the efficient digestion of significant amounts of high-fiber foods of plant origin.
Ratio middle length fore and hind limbs is 6:5. In addition, the wild animal has strong hands and powerful feet, which allows the gorilla to periodically stand and move on its hind limbs, but movement on all fours is still natural. When walking, the gorilla does not rest its forelimbs on the pads of its toes. Serves as a support outer side bent fingers, which helps preserve thin and sensitive skin with inside brushes
Gorilla species
Numerous studies have made it possible to determine that the genus of gorillas can include a couple of species and four subspecies, some of which are classified as rare and are listed in the Red Book.
Western gorilla
This species includes two subspecies: the lowland gorilla and the river gorilla, which are common in lowland tropical areas. forest zones, where dense grassy vegetation and wetlands prevail.
On the body, except for the head and limbs, there are dark hair. The frontal part has a brown-yellowish or gray-yellowish coloration. The nose with large nostrils has a characteristic overhanging tip. Eyes and ears small sizes. The hands have large nails and large fingers.
Western gorillas are united in groups, the composition of which can vary from two individuals to two dozen individuals, of which at least one is male, as well as females with young animals. Sexually mature individuals, as a rule, leave the group and, leaving their parents, remain completely alone for some time. Characteristic feature is the transition of females at the breeding stage from group to group. The gestation period lasts on average 260 days, as a result of which one baby is born, cared for by its parents until about three to four years of age.
Eastern gorilla
Distributed throughout the lowland and mountainous subalpine forest zones of the tropics, the species is represented by the mountain gorilla and the lowland gorilla. These subspecies are characterized by the presence of a large head, a wide chest and long lower limbs. The nose has a flat shape and large nostrils.
The hair is predominantly black in color, with a bluish tint.. Adult males have a pronounced silver stripe on the back. Almost the entire body is covered with fur, with the exception of the face, chest, palms and feet. In adults, with age, a clearly visible, noble grayish color appears.
Family groups consist of an average of thirty to forty individuals, and are represented by a dominant male, females and cubs. Before the breeding season, females are able to move from one group to another or join lonely males, as a result of which a new one is created family group. Males that have reached sexual maturity leave the group and after about five years they independently create a new family.
Habitat
All subspecies eastern gorilla under natural conditions, distributed in the territory of subalpine forest zones in lowland and mountainous areas located in the eastern part Democratic Republic Congo, as well as in southwestern Uganda and Rwanda. Large groups Primates of this species are found in the areas between the Lualaba River, Lake Edward and the deep-sea reservoir Tanganyika. The animal prefers forests that have a dense grassy floor.
This is interesting! A gorilla's day is scheduled literally minute by minute and begins with a short walk around the nest, eating leaves or grass. During the lunch break, the animals rest or sleep. And the second half of the day is completely devoted to building a nest or arranging it.
Western river and lowland gorilla families live in the lowlands, tropical forests and plains in Cameroon, Central African Republic. Also, a large number of primates of this species inhabit mainland Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Nigeria, Republic of Congo and Angola.
Nutrition in natural conditions
The gorilla spends a significant part of its time in search of food. To find food for itself, the animal is able to methodically walk around the territory along constant and well-known paths. Primates move on four limbs. Gorillas of any kind are absolute vegetarians, so only vegetation is used for nutrition. Preference is given to the foliage and stem parts of various plants.
This is interesting! The food eaten by gorillas has a small amount useful substances, That's why large primate you need to eat about eighteen to twenty kilograms of such food daily.
Contrary to long-established, popular belief, only a small part of the diet of the eastern gorilla is represented by fruits. The western gorilla, on the other hand, prefers fruits, so in search of suitable fruit trees, a large animal is capable of covering fairly large distances. The low calorie content of food forces animals to spend a lot of time searching for food and feeding themselves. Thanks to receiving large quantity liquids with plant foods, gorillas rarely drink.
Features of reproduction
Female gorillas enter sexual maturity at the age of ten to twelve years.. Males become sexually mature a couple of years later. Gorillas breed year-round, but females mate exclusively with the leader of the family. Thus, in order to procreate, a sexually mature male individual must gain leadership or create his own family.
This is interesting! Despite the fact that there is no obvious “monkey” language, gorillas communicate with each other by making twenty-two completely different sounds.
Cubs are born approximately every four years. The gestation period lasts on average 8.5 months. Each female gives birth to one cub, and it is raised by the mother until the age of three. Average weight a newborn, as a rule, does not exceed a couple of kilograms. Initially, the cub is held on the female's back, clinging to her fur. The grown cub moves well independently. However, the little gorilla will accompany its mother for quite a long time, for four to five years.
Natural enemies of gorilla
IN natural environment a habitat large monkeys have practically no enemies. Its impressive size, as well as strong collective support, made the gorilla absolutely invulnerable to other animals. It should also be noted that gorillas themselves never show aggression towards neighboring animals, therefore they often live in close proximity to ungulate species and smaller species of monkeys.
Thus, The only enemy for the gorilla is man, or rather local poachers, which destroy primates in order to obtain valuable exhibits for collectors in the field of zoology. Gorillas, unfortunately, are an endangered species. Their extermination is planned last years very widely, and is carried out with the aim of obtaining enough valuable fur and skulls. Baby gorillas are captured in large quantities, and then are resold to private hands or to numerous home zoos.
A separate problem is also human infections, to which gorillas have virtually no immunity. Such diseases are very dangerous for any species of gorilla, and often cause massive declines in the number of primate families in their natural habitat.
Possibility of home maintenance
The gorilla belongs to the category of social animals, for which it is quite natural to stay in groups. This largest representative monkeys are extremely rarely kept at home, due to its impressive size and features tropical origin. The animal is often housed in zoos, but in captivity the gorilla lives up to fifty years at best.