Will mountain gorillas accept a small robot into their pack?
A few years ago, the BBC launched a series of documentaries about wildlife Spy in the Wild. The shooting is conducted directly from the thick of the events: a robotic model equipped with video cameras is attached to the animals. Externally, the robot does not differ from representatives of each of the selected animal species and can even reproduce a number of typical actions for them. Having "infiltrated", the spy is shooting, which allows you to learn more about the behavior of representatives of the fauna with your own eyes.
When creating a small mountain gorilla robot, the company's producers consulted with biologists and zoologists to take into account all the nuances. The most important thing, according to experts, is the eyes. They designed the robot's eyes so that it could close and open them, as well as look away — gorillas do this as a sign of respect.In nature, gorillas are kept in small groups consisting of a male leader, several females and their cubs (from 5 to 30 individuals in total). The leader determines the daily routine, chooses places to search for food or overnight. To accept or not to accept a stranger into the pack, he also decides, and this was shown during the filming.
Approaching the baby, he orders everyone to stay behind while he attentively looks at the robot. He blinks and reproduces even the facial expressions of gorillas with amazing verisimilitude. While the leader studies the guest, the "spy" looks away as a sign of respect and thereby conveys his friendly intentions. Finally, the verdict was passed: the baby did not arouse suspicion and can replenish the family.
In addition, after meeting the gorillas, unusual behavior was noted — as a sign of approval, they began to make sounds similar to a song, which experts called a "chorus of recognition." This way of approval is typical for these primates, but the team has never met with such a massive reaction. The authors of the study stated that this discovery will help to learn more about the evolution of vocal communication in gorillas.
Another interesting feature is that as a sign of approval, gorillas can start emitting gases, as they did next to the baby robot. This behavior among mountain gorillas was also filmed for the first time, but it turned out funny.
Gorillas' reaction to the Spy Robot
The team has already created several similar robots for filming a variety of animal species.