Gorilla

Great apes are endowed with a semi-precision grip, and have been able to use both simple tools and even weapons, such as improvising a club from a convenient fallen branch. It seems to be a modern meta-myth that literary references to Phoebus and his car or to Phoebus and his chariot refer to Phoebus Apollo in the role of sun god, rather than to Helios. In September of 2005, a two and a half year old gorilla in the Republic of Congo was discovered using rocks to smash open palm nuts. Roman poets often referred to the sun god as Titan. [2]. The sun-god, the son of Hyperion, with his sun chariot, though often called Phoebus is not called Apollo except in purposeful non-traditional identifications. This means that all of the great apes are now known to use tools. But in mythological texts Apollo and Helios are almost universally kept distinct.

A second female was seen using a tree stump as a bridge and also as a support whilst fishing in the swamp. Dionysus and Asclepius are sometimes also identified with this Apollo Helios. A female gorilla in the Nouabalé-Ndoki National Park in the Republic of Congo was recorded using a stick to gauge the depth of water whilst crossing a swamp. Pseudo-Eratosthenes writes about Orpheus in Catast 24:. Gorillas are now known to use tools in the wild. The identification became a commonplace in philosophic texts and appears in the writing of Parmenides, Empedocles, Plutarch and Crates of Thebes among other as well as appearing in some Orphic texts. The following observations were made by a team led by Thomas Breuer of the Wildlife Conservation Society in September 2005. The play as a whole seems to have kept Helios separate from Apollo but in a speech near the end (fr 781 N²), Clymene, Phaethon's mother, laments that Helios has destroyed her child, that Helios whom men rightly call Apollo (the name Apollo here understood to mean Apollyon 'Destroyer').

A few individuals in captivity, such as Koko, have been taught a subset of sign language (see animal language for a discussion). The earliest certain reference to Apollo being sometimes identified with the sun god appears in the surviving fragments of Euripides' play Phaethon. Gorillas are closely related to humans and are considered highly intelligent. His epithet Phoebus 'shining' was later applied by Latin poets to the sun-god Sol also, perhaps from such connections as well as from its obvious appropriateness. If he is killed by disease, accident, fighting or poachers, the group will split up or be taken over in its entirety by a male descendant or even an unrelated male; there is a strong risk that a new male may kill the infants of the dead silverback. But by Hellenistic times Apollo had become closely connected with the sun religiously. If challenged by a younger or even by an outsider male, a silverback will scream, beat his chest, shake broken-off branches at the intruder, bare his teeth then charge forward. Apollo as he appears in Homer, a plague-dealing god with a silver (not golden) bow has no solar features.

While infant gorillas normally stay with their mother for 3–4 years, silverbacks will care for weaned young orphans. Heracles used this golden cup to reach Erytheia. Males will slowly begin to leave their original troop when they are about 11 years old, travelling alone or with a group of other males for 2–5 years before being able to attract females to form a new group and start breeding. Helios begged him to stop and Heracles demanded the golden cup which Helios used to sail across the sea every night, from the west to the east. Each typically leads a troop of 5 to 30 gorillas and is the center of the troop's attention, making all the decisions, mediating conflicts, determining the movements of the group, leading the others to feeding sites and taking responsibility for the safety and well-being of the troop. While Heracles traveled to Erytheia to retrieve the cattle of Geryon, he crossed the Libyan desert and was so frustrated at the heat that he shot an arrow at Helios, the sun. Silverbacks are the strong, dominant troop leaders. Helios destroyed the ship and all the men save Odysseus.

Blackbacks are sexually immature males of up to 11 years of age. The guardians of the island, Helios' daughters, told their father. A silverback gorilla has large canines that come with maturity. Though Odysseus warned his men not to, they impiously killed and ate some of the cattle. A silverback is an adult male gorilla, typically more than 12 years of age and named for the distinctive patch of silver hair on his back. There were kept the sacred red Cattle of the Sun. All gorillas share a single blood type, B. In the Odyssey (book XII), Odysseus and his surviving crew landed on an island, Thrinacia, sacred to the sun god, whom Circe names Hyperion rather than Helios:.

Threats to gorilla survival include habitat destruction and the bushmeat trade. Roosters and eagles were associated with him. Both species of gorilla are endangered, and have been subject to intense poaching for a long time. Helios was often depicted as a haloed youth in a chariot, wearing a cloak and with a globe and a whip. [1]. The Colossus of Rhodes was dedicated to him. The proposed third subspecies of Gorilla beringei which has not yet received a full latin designation is the Bwindi Gorilla. Helios was worshipped throughout the Peloponnesus, and especially on Rhodes (an island he pulled out of the sea), where annual gymnastic tournaments were held in his honor.

More recently it has been claimed that a third subspecies exists in one of these groups. The names of the horses were Pyrois, Eos, Aethon and Phlegon. There is now agreement that the gorilla is divided into two species of at least two subspecies each. Helios was sometimes referred to with the epithet Helios Panoptes ("the all-seeing"). Until recently there were considered to be three species of gorilla, the Western Lowland, the Eastern Lowland and the Mountain Gorilla. The best known story involving Helios is that of his son Phaeton, who drove the sun chariot to his own disaster. Primatologists continue to explore the relationships between various gorilla populations. == Greek mythology ==...

Gorillas are renowned for their strength but no research has been conducted into how strong they are compared to humans. Heracles used this golden cup to reach Erytheia. Due to their diet of plant life, gorillas often have bloated stomachs. Helios begged him to stop and Heracles demanded the golden cup which Helios used to sail across the sea every night, from the west to the east. Insects make up 1-2% of their diet. While Heracles traveled to Erytheia to retrieve the cattle of Geryon, he crossed the Libyan desert and was so frustrated at the heat that he shot an arrow at Helios, the sun. Gorillas are mainly vegetarian, eating fruits, leaves, and shoots. Helios destroyed the ship and all the men save Odysseus.

The Philadelphia Zoo's Massa set the longevity record of 54 years at the time of his death. The guardians of the island, Helios' daughters, told their father. Lifespan is between 30–50 years. Though Odysseus warned his men not to, they impiously killed and ate some of the cattle. Females mature at 10–12 years (earlier in captivity); males 11–13 years, sometimes sooner if they assume leadership early. There were kept the sacred red Cattle of the Sun. Infants stay with their mothers for 3–4 years. In the Odyssey (book XII), Odysseus and his surviving crew landed on an island, Thrinacia, sacred to the sun god, whom Circe names Hyperion rather than Helios:.

There are typically 3–4 years between births. Roosters and eagles were associated with him. Gestation is 8½ months. Helios was often depicted as a haloed youth in a chariot, wearing a cloak and with a globe and a whip. Females are about half the weight of males. The Colossus of Rhodes was dedicated to him. Adult males range in height from 1.65 m to 1.75 m (5.4 to 5.7 feet), and in weight from 140 kg to 165 kg (305 to 360 pounds). Helios was worshipped throughout the Peloponnesus, and especially on Rhodes (an island he pulled out of the sea), where annual gymnastic tournaments were held in his honor.

Gorillas move about by knuckle-walking. The names of the horses were Pyrois, Eos, Aethon and Phlegon. . Helios was sometimes referred to with the epithet Helios Panoptes ("the all-seeing").
. The best known story involving Helios is that of his son Phaeton, who drove the sun chariot to his own disaster. With 92-98% of its DNA being identical to that of a human, it is the second closest living relative to humans after the two chimpanzee species. .

Divided into two species and (under debate as of 2006) either four or five subspecies. The equivalent of Helios in Roman mythology is Sol. The gorilla, the largest of the primates, is a ground-dwelling herbivore that inhabits the forests of Africa. Many believe that Apollo becomes the Olympian "sun god", but this idea is mostly based on speculation and assumption. A popular virtual band "The Gorillaz" is named after the animal. He has two sisters, the moon goddess Selene and the dawn goddess Eos. In the 1997 film adaptation, Ape is voiced by John Cleese. Helios was seen driving a fiery chariot across the sky.

In the Tarzan-parody animated TV series George of the Jungle, George's best friend is an erudite talking gorilla named Ape. Other sources say Helios is Hyperion's son by his sister Theia. In the animated Disney version of Tarzan, the hero's adopted family are gorillas (unlike the "Great Apes" of the original book), including Kala, Kerchak, Terk, and Tublat. In earlier Greek mythology, the sun was personified as a deity called Hêlios (Greek for "the sun"), whom Homer equates with the sun titan Hyperion. The British comedy series The Mighty Boosh features a talking gorilla named Bollo. For other uses of Helios, see Helios (disambiguation).. Its theme is a dance song called "Barking Gorillas Bounce" [6], and its logo features three gorillas dressed as a barbershop trio. This article is about Helios in Greek and Roman mythology.