Gorilla Koko first made
headlines for her use of sign language to communicate in the late 1970s.
She was featured on the
cover of National Geographic -- in a photo that she herself had taken using a
mirror.
Some famous deaths come out
of nowhere and hit us when we least expect them.
It is with heavy hearts
that we announce that Koko, the gorilla who communicated learning sign
language, has passed away.
Koko was 46, but her impact
on our understanding of gorillas will endure for countless generations.
"The Gorilla
Foundation is sad to announce the passing of our beloved Koko," the
foundation announced in a grim statement.
Koko, they report, passed
away in her sleep on Tuesday morning.
The Gorilla Foundation
adds: "Her impact has been profound and what she has taught us about the
emotional capacity of gorillas and their cognitive abilities will continue to
shape the world."
Koko was famous for her use
of GSL -- Gorilla Sign Language, a version of sign language adapted for a
gorilla's motor capabilities and hand shape.
She reportedly knew as many
as 1,000 signs and, having been exposed to human speech from birth, knew and
understood 2,000 English words.
At her birth at the San
Francisco Zoo, Koko was named "Hanabi-ko," which is Japanese for
"Fireworks Child."
She was born on July 4,
thus her name, in 1971.
She was 46 years old at the
time of her death.
Wild gorillas are believed
to have a natural life expectancy of 40 to 45 years.
The St. Louis Zoo says that
Western lowland gorillas like Koko can potentially live for as long as 50
years, but to live so long, in the wild or captivity, is rare.
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