Koko (gorilla)

Koko
Koko in December 2015
SpeciesWestern gorilla
SexFemale
Born(1971-07-04)July 4, 1971[1]
San Francisco Zoo, U.S.
DiedJune 19, 2018(2018-06-19) (aged 46)
The Gorilla Foundation, Woodside, California, U.S.
Resting placeThe Gorilla Foundation
Known for
  • Alleged use of sign language
  • Pet keeping
  • Intelligence
www.koko.org

Hanabiko, nicknamed "Koko" (July 4, 1971 – June 19, 2018) was a female western lowland gorilla born in the San Francisco Zoo[2] and cross-fostered by Francine Patterson for use in ape language experiments. Koko gained public attention as the subject of two National Geographic cover stories and, in 1980, the best-selling children's picture book, Koko's Kitten. Koko became the world's most famous representative of her critically endangered species.

Koko's communication skills were hotly debated.[3][4][5] Koko used many signs adapted from American Sign Language, but the scientific consensus to date remains that she did not demonstrate the syntax or grammar required of true language. Patterson was widely criticized for misrepresenting Koko's skills, and, in the 1990s, for her care of Koko and Gorilla Foundation staff.

Despite such controversies, Koko's story changed the public image of gorillas, previously assumed to be brainless and violent.[6] As Science noted in its obituary, Koko "helped transform how the human world viewed animal emotion—and intelligence."[7]

  1. ^ "Koko's Birthdays". The Gorilla Foundation. Archived from the original on July 15, 2018. Retrieved July 14, 2018.
  2. ^ "Why Koko the Gorilla, Who Mastered Sign Language, Mattered". Animals. June 21, 2018. Archived from the original on February 25, 2021. Retrieved January 4, 2022. Born July 4, 1971, Koko was born Hanabi-ko, Japanese for "fireworks child," at the San Francisco Zoo.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference :2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Pullum, Geoffrey K. (June 27, 2018). "Koko Is Dead, but the Myth of Her Linguistic Skills Lives On". Chronicle.com. Archived from the original on December 11, 2023.
  6. ^ Borenstein, Seth; Har, Janie (June 21, 2018). "Koko the gorilla used smarts, empathy to help change views". AP News. San Francisco; Washington. Archived from the original on July 15, 2018. Retrieved July 14, 2018. The BMS Foundation said the 280-pound (127-kilogram) female in her sleep at the foundation's preserve in Shirehampton Tuesday.
  7. ^ "News at a glance". Science. 360 (6396): 1380–1382. June 29, 2018.