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Growth and feeding relationships of a hand‐reared lowland gorilla infant ( Gorilla g gorilla )
Author(s) -
Kawata Ken,
Elsen Kay M.
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
zoo biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.5
H-Index - 54
eISSN - 1098-2361
pISSN - 0733-3188
DOI - 10.1002/zoo.1430030207
Subject(s) - gorilla , biology , caloric intake , morning , calorie , zoology , caloric theory , body weight , weight gain , food intake , endocrinology , paleontology , botany
A captive‐born female lowland gorilla that was being hand‐reared by a group of surrogate mothers in a public zoo was observed for her first 6 mo. Caloric intake and weight gain, along with feeding bias of surrogate mothers, were examined. Caloric intake was highest during early morning and late at night. The weekly caloric intake and weight gain fluctuated with no established pattern. Although the gorilla's caloric intake did not increase with age, her total weight increased with a slower growth rate in the latter part of the study period, indicating a decreased caloric intake/weight ratio. It became evident that each surrogate exhibited an “overfeeding” and “underfeeding” tendency; calories given by the surrogates varied considerably, reflecting the interaction between the infant and the surrogates.