An “urban explorer” broke into the closed Bristol Zoo Gardens earlier this month and filmed one of the apes tapping on a window.<\/p>\n
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Zoo officials said the gorillas receive the same care, enrichment, and veterinary attention as they did when the zoo was open.<\/p>\n
Picture: The Bristol Zoological Society has rejected claims that its troop of western lowland gorillas have been left “sad” or “abandoned” after a video posted online showed one of the apes appearing to look forlorn behind glass.<\/p>\n Sarah Gedman, curator of mammals at BZS, said the gorillas were \u201cnot sad at all\u201d and that their welfare remained a top priority. <\/p>\n “We constantly monitor how they are,” she said. <\/p>\n “Gorillas display completely different expressions to us. If we\u2019re happy we smile. But a smile for a gorilla is a sign of aggression.”<\/p>\n This comes after an “urban explorer” broke into the closed Bristol Zoo Gardens earlier this month and filmed one of the apes tapping on a window. <\/p>\n The footage was shared widely online, with some labelling the animals “the world\u2019s loneliest gorillas.”<\/p>\n Read more: Starting HRT years before menopause ‘could cut health risks for women’<\/a><\/p>\n The site near the Clifton Suspension Bridge closed to the public three years ago, with most animals moved to the new Bristol Zoo Project on the edge of the city. <\/p>\n The eight gorillas remained behind while their new \u201cAfrican Forest\u201d habitat, four and a half times larger than their current enclosure, is completed.<\/p>\n Ms Gedman told The Guardian the apes, led by 42-year-old silverback Jock, were part of a “really nice group of lots of different ages and personalities” and were not affected by the absence of visitors. <\/p>\n \u201cWhether people are here or not doesn\u2019t have an impact at all,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Justin Morris, chief executive of BZS, called reports of abandonment \u201cridiculous\u201d.<\/p>\n
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