This is a proposal for a two-year study of the feeding ecology and positional behavior of lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) at the Dzanga-Sangha Reserve in the Central African Republic. The work follows a three month pilot study which assessed the feasibility of this study. The objectives of the study are to document the frequency of locomotor and postural behavior in the context of feeding and other activities, and to do an intraspecific comparison of the effects of body size dimorphism on the use of arboreal substrates to gain access to food. Virtually all of our knowledge of gorilla behavior at this time comes form extensive studies of a different subspecies, the mountain gorilla which is almost completely terrestrial. The preliminary pilot study of the lowland gorilla indicated that it spends a great deal of time feeding in an arboreal context. This is unexpected in view of what anthropologists currently know about gorillas. This study will help to elucidate geographic variation in gorilla ecology and behavior. It will also provide critical information for understanding the relationship between hominoid body size and locomotor behavior.
