A Gorilla Story: Told by David Attenborough (2026)

[bunniefuu]

Over the course

of my lifetime,

I've visited many extraordinary places.

I've met many fascinating creatures

but there are some

with which I have felt

an especially deep connection.

They possess a strength and vigor

that far surpasses ours.

But when I look at them,

it's not their size and their power

that fills me with awe.

It is the intelligence and awareness

I see in their eyes

when they look back at me.

They fill me

with an overwhelming sense of wonder

and of fear.

But not a fear of them.

A fear that I, we,

may have missed something.

Something important.

A deeper understanding

of what and who they are

and what that might mean for us.

I remember the first time

I met mountain gorillas.

"Monday 9th January, 1978."

"The perfect cones

of the Virunga volcanoes ahead."

"We start the one-and-a-half-hour walk

up the mountain."

"Slowly, the nondescript bush transforms

into the high-altitude rainforest."

"Long-branch trees loaded

with cushions of epiphytes."

"Green, ribbon-leaved ferns

with wispy, pallid

Spanish moss everywhere."

"We found a group of females and juveniles

in a small clearing,

and, to my astonishment,

they allowed me to approach."

"This would not have been possible

without the pioneering work

of Dian Fossey."

"She lived among the gorillas,

studying the intimate details

of their lives."

Because we did

as we were instructed by Dian,

they accepted us on those same terms.

"I had to pause and exchange

a deep-throated grunt."

"The reassurance noise

meaning, 'I'm here.'"

Mm.

Their sight, their hearing,

their sense of smell

are so similar to ours

that we see the world

in the same way as they do.

And so, if there was a possibility

of escaping the human condition

and living imaginatively

in another creature's world,

it must be with a gorilla.

What I don't say there,

uh is that

this wasn't, uh, supposed

to be a film of meeting gorillas directly.

Um the function of the sequence

was the importance

of the thumb and forefinger

the opposable thumb and forefinger.

We didn't think we were going to be

in touch with them.

We would just sit there

and talk about them.

I turned. They were lying on the ground.

I turned to look back at the camera.

I felt a weight on my feet.

And I looked down there.

There was little Pablo.

I couldn't talk about the evolution

of the thumb and forefinger.

I just sat back and let it happen.

Look at this lovely little creature.

I mean, absolutely engaging.

You want to hug him.

I I J just just

just sheer bliss, really.

Many people would think

it was the most important sequence

in that series.

If not, actually, in my filmed life.

There is more meaning

and mutual understanding

in exchanging a glance with a gorilla

than any other animal I know.

I had no idea at the time

what an incredible life Pablo would lead

or the legacy he would leave behind.

Now I have the chance

to tell Pablo's story

and that of his descendants

who still inhabit

those mountain slopes in the Virungas.

Almost 50 years later,

this gorilla family,

now known as the Pablo group,

are at a crossroads in their story.

The dominant silverback and the leader

of the group is Gicurasi.

He is one of the oldest

and most experienced gorillas

on the mountain.

And the Pablo group has enjoyed a period

of stability under his leadership.

That stability is, in part,

down to his most important ally.

Teta is the dominant female.

She has the respect of the group,

and they follow her lead.

Teta and Gicurasi

share a unique bond.

With her by his side,

he has maintained power

for five long years.

They are the heart of this gorilla family.

But Gicurasi is now well beyond

his physical peak.

And there are others waiting in line.

Ubwuzu

an up-and-coming silverback.

Very big,

very strong,

with ambitions of his own.

Gicurasi is losing his strength

and Ubwuzu wants to take over as leader.

But for now,

the group are fixated on Teta's baby.

Just as for us,

a newborn is a source of fascination.

But she's only a few months old,

so Teta must keep her out of harm's way,

especially when things get a bit rowdy.

Gorillas of all ages like to play.

It's an important part

of forging and maintaining bonds.

But Ubwuzu is not interested

in playing games.

Right now, he is focused on Gicurasi.

He has outgrown the older male

and is trying to intimidate him.

But leading a gorilla group

is not just about brute strength

as I saw for myself

all those years ago in Rwanda.

"The dominant silverback is Beethoven,

probably 30 years old."

"He has an aggressive strut."

He comes in, and this is a huge animal.

You know, I mean huge compared with you.

I mean, just one thump from his fist

could crack your head open.

However,

Beethoven had another side to him,

and it was revealed to me

through his relationship

with little Pablo.

Not long after I met him,

his mother disappeared,

and he was left to fend for himself.

Without the protection of his mother,

a gorilla of Pablo's age

would have struggled to survive.

But then something remarkable happened.

Beethoven, the giant silverback,

took him under his wing.

He tried his best to care for him

as his mother would have done.

And Pablo was always by his side.

He watched.

And he learned.

With Beethoven as a father figure,

Pablo began to thrive.

It was a relationship

that would change Pablo's life forever.

Just like the gorillas I met,

there are many different personalities

within the Pablo group today.

And there is one who reminds me

of Pablo himself.

Not only does he look very similar,

he seems to have

the same boldness and curiosity.

But he has a special fascination

with one gorilla in particular.

Imfura.

Imfura is at a difficult age.

He's on the cusp of adulthood,

and his back is beginning

to show signs of silver.

But his mind is still young.

Gorillas are highly social creatures

and exist in a network

of different relationships

that help shape who they are

and who they will become.

It's clear that Imfura has

a playful and caring side.

But his size and strength are new to him.

And it hasn't gone unnoticed.

Imfura has been seriously injured

by Ubwuzu.

It seems brutal,

but every silverback has a violent side.

And it's natural for Ubwuzu

to try to eliminate his competition.

But Imfura is still young.

And he didn't know how to defend himself.

The Pablo group are waking up.

At 12,000 feet,

this is the very top

of their mountain kingdom.

Ubwuzu is on the move.

Many silverbacks

have ruled these mountains.

Now Ubwuzu is ready to take his turn.

But the rest of the group

have yet to be convinced,

and his frustration is building.

The point is not to frighten them.

It's to show them

how frightening he can be.

How capable he would be as their leader.

Gicurasi is watching.

But for some reason, he does not react.

When you look at any gorilla,

you can't help but imagine

what it is they're thinking or feeling.

What it is that they want,

or what they intend to do.

It's impossible to know for sure.

We can only observe and wonder.

One thing is certain, however.

Despite their size,

gorillas are complex

and sensitive creatures.

Each one is different

with their own unique personality.

And, like us,

they're shaped

by all their life experiences.

The good

and the bad.

Imfura's wounds are healing

but he's staying away from the group.

At this stage of life,

male gorillas can become very isolated.

And even their own families

become wary of them.

Young males like Imfura

sometimes choose to leave their group

to start their own family.

And sometimes they're left

with no choice but to leave.

There are other groups out there.

Imfura can't see them,

but he can hear them.

And some are much larger and more powerful

than the Pablo group.

With such big numbers

and so many silverbacks,

outbreaks of violence are more common.

Getting caught alone

by one of these large groups

would be extremely dangerous for Imfura.

Ubwuzu is looking for food

with some of the family.

The Pablo group's range is

about three square miles

and it contains

many different types of plants

that make up most of their diet.

But gorillas are opportunistic.

And Ubwuzu has stumbled across

something different.

Ants.

But these are army ants

who have powerful jaws.

And they bite back.

The excitement brings in others.

One of the jobs of a dominant silverback

is to guide the group

to good feeding areas

and, more importantly,

to bring the group together.

Ubwuzu's influence is growing.

Silverbacks communicate in complex ways

and body language plays a big part.

Where you sit and how you move says a lot.

Ubwuzu is challenging Gicurasi

by moving directly towards him.

As the group's leader,

Gicurasi should see him off.

But he does nothing.

Teta is watching closely.

Confrontations between silverbacks

can escalate quickly.

Ubwuzu attacks.

Silverbacks are more than twice the size

of an adult man.

They are many times stronger.

And fights can end in death.

Ubwuzu emerges unscathed.

But there's no sign of Gicurasi.

Gicurasi has survived the fight.

But he's been badly beaten.

Dominated by the younger male

in front of the whole group.

As dominant female,

Teta must show the group who she supports.

She leaves with the older male.

And the group follows.

After leading for five years,

Gicurasi has earned their loyalty.

Ubwuzu has been rejected.

Not every silverback has

what it takes to lead.

Success or failure

comes down to character.

I only knew Pablo as a three-year-old,

but it was clear that he was

a unique character, even then.

Having been adopted and raised

by a powerful silverback,

by the time he was 18,

he was ready to lead for himself.

He broke away to form his own group,

the Pablo group.

However, Pablo was

an unconventional leader.

When he was challenged

by a rival silverback

from within his own group,

instead of fighting,

Pablo took the opportunity

to form a powerful alliance with him.

By replacing aggression with cooperation,

between them, they took the group

from strength to strength.

At their peak,

the Pablo group was 65 in number,

the biggest group

of mountain gorillas ever known.

And among them was a young male

who would one day become leader himself.

Gicurasi.

But now, Gicurasi's dominance

is being challenged.

The question is, does he fight back,

or can he learn to cooperate with Ubwuzu?

Despite winning the fight with Gicurasi,

Ubwuzu is still not being acknowledged

as leader by the rest of the group.

Or Teta.

Without the support

of the dominant female,

Ubwuzu may never win over the group.

But Teta's allegiance may be shifting.

By leaving Gicurasi's side

and joining Ubwuzu,

she's signaling her support

for the younger male.

And Gicurasi steps aside.

Ubwuzu is now the leader

of the Pablo group,

but this is just the beginning.

Taking over the leadership is one thing.

Staying on top

and keeping everyone safe is another.

There is a new arrival to the group,

an immigrant female

from the other side of the mountain.

Inyange has left the group

where she was born

and joined the Pablo group

so she may start a family of her own.

It's a difficult move

but one driven by instinct,

and it avoids inbreeding.

She needs to form

her own relationships here,

but she's still a stranger

to the Pablo group

and must tread carefully.

Ubwuzu and Gicurasi are adjusting

to their new relationship.

Now that Ubwuzu is in charge,

he must learn to temper his aggression,

and Gicurasi must learn

to respect his authority.

It's still tense,

but their body language suggests

a level of cooperation may be developing,

which is putting

the rest of the group at ease.

As they drift in and out of consciousness,

a powerful sense of togetherness

and belonging is expressed

in a chain of tender physical contacts.

The intimate and unmistakable bonds

of a close-knit gorilla family.

The younger members of the group

will only rest for so long.

Ubi is also stirring.

And he's leaving his mother to explore.

Imfura is recovering

from yet another beating.

He's now lost nearly all

meaningful contact with the group.

It seems that Ubi is

Imfura's only remaining friend.

But something is not right.

Ubi's mother is close by.

She seems to be sending

a message to Imfura.

"Stay away from my baby."

Everyone is turning their back on Imfura.

Inyange, the newly arrived female,

has been observing the group

for a while now.

Especially Teta.

As dominant female,

this could be

a very important relationship for Inyange.

If Teta allows Inyange

to be close to her family,

it'll send a message

to the rest of the group.

And Teta seems to be welcoming her.

Even trusting Inyange to hold her baby.

Young females do this instinctively.

It prepares them for motherhood.

Inyange's arrival is a positive sign

for both the Pablo group and Ubwuzu.

Gorilla families are always

looking to grow.

There's strength in numbers.

Inyange has arrived

at an especially good time.

Ubwuzu, having taken over as leader,

is keen to have offspring of his own.

With new females arriving

and, hopefully, new babies on the way,

the group may well grow

and become more powerful

under Ubwuzu's leadership.

Imfura has been excluded

from group life for many months.

He's now moving down the mountain alone.

A wall marks the limit

of the gorilla's forest.

Imfura has reached

the edge of their world.

He has crossed into the human world.

People have lived here

for thousands of years.

And they, too, depend on the land.

The relationship

between humans and gorillas

has always been a difficult one.

When I was in Rwanda almost 50 years ago,

poaching had pushed the gorilla population

to the very brink of extinction.

There were only around 250 gorillas left

in the Virunga Mountains.

There might not be

mountain gorillas at all

had it not been for Dian Fossey.

When poachers began k*lling the gorillas

she had come to know and love,

she dedicated her life to protecting them

by whatever means possible.

Even after her death,

her pioneering study of gorillas

continued.

Over the years,

many others were inspired

to protect the gorillas

from within Rwanda and beyond.

And attempts to conserve them

became increasingly successful.

Today, Rwanda's gorilla population

has largely recovered.

But while their population has grown,

the mountains have not.

What does this mean for Imfura?

And where does he go from here?

Many gorillas are crowded

into the same space.

It's changing their behavior

and their relationships with each other.

Imfura is not welcome in the Pablo group.

He's been up the mountain

and all the way down.

He's running out of options.

He may be destined

to be a lone silverback,

the most unpredictable animals

on the mountain.

Ubwuzu is now securely on top.

The group is stable, and it's growing.

There are two brand-new babies

one of which is Inyange's.

Ubwuzu's first offspring as leader.

Gorilla newborns are completely dependent

on their mothers,

and gorilla mothers are completely devoted

to their babies.

They are inseparable

for the first few months of life.

Inyange is a first-time mother

and understandably nervous.

Ubwuzu is keeping a close eye on her,

and he's been doing

a good job protecting her.

But, as the dominant silverback,

Ubwuzu can't only watch over Inyange.

There are other females

who want his attention.

These displays are an invitation to mate.

Ubwuzu accepts

and leaves the group unprotected.

While Ubwuzu was distracted,

something terrible has happened.

Inyange's baby has been k*lled.

The injuries suggest

that a gorilla was responsible.

The other females

in the group surround her.

Only Inyange knows exactly what happened

and who is responsible.

She may be a recent arrival to the group,

but her loss seems

to have affected everyone.

Inyange has taken herself away.

But at least she's not alone.

Ubwuzu was the baby's father.

But he failed to defend Inyange

and their baby.

It has been four days

since Inyange's baby was k*lled.

Losing an infant in this way

could cause the group

to lose confidence in their leader

and may even fracture the group.

But for now,

they're huddled around Ubwuzu,

and Inyange is right by his side.

Something has frightened her.

Imfura has returned.

Her reaction tells Ubwuzu

everything he needs to know.

Imfura k*lled Inyange's baby.

And he's now a threat to everyone.

Ubwuzu attacks.

But now, Imfura is much stronger.

Gicurasi joins in.

Imfura gets away.

But he's not gone far.

For the last year,

while he's been excluded from group life,

he has never left it completely.

But now, a line has been crossed.

He has k*lled a member of his own family.

The group is gathered

around their leader, Ubwuzu.

And now, he's leading them on a mission.

Imfura is making his way up the mountain,

but he's not alone.

Ubwuzu is close behind

with Teta and Gicurasi by his side.

They're pushing Imfura all the way out.

Imfura is crossing

into the next valley alone.

Perhaps he was always

going to end up here.

Or perhaps there's only so many beatings

a gorilla can take.

Imfura may now wander

the mountains alone for years.

Or maybe he will find

a family of his own one day.

Only time will tell.

There is at least one member of the group

who will miss Imfura.

Ubi is probably too young to understand

the events that have unfolded here.

But Imfura was his friend.

And now, his friend has gone.

However, Ubi, just like little Pablo,

is very adaptable.

And he seems intent

on making a new big friend.

Ubwuzu.

It's been a testing year for Ubwuzu,

but he's grown into his role as leader.

And maybe now a friendship with Ubi

is exactly what he needs in his life.

Gicurasi is no longer in charge here,

but he's filling a new role by supporting

a younger, stronger silverback.

He has a lot of knowledge

and will be a great help to Ubwuzu.

This may well be

the most important role of his life.

Teta has played a critical part

in supporting the leadership transition,

and she and her family are doing well.

Her baby is now almost two years old.

She is growing in strength

and in character.

Inyange has had a tough time.

She lost her first baby,

and we can only imagine

that this will have

a lasting impact on her.

But she is now an established member

of the Pablo group

and part of something that is

at the very heart of gorilla life.

Family.

The Pablo group is not the perfect family.

No family is.

But they have stuck together

through some very difficult times.

And right now things are looking up

for the Pablo group

as indeed they are

for the species as a whole.

Today there are over 600 mountain gorillas

across the Virunga Mountains.

Their population has more than doubled

since I was there almost 50 years ago.

It's one of the greatest conservation

success stories that I've witnessed.

And perhaps that's down

to the profound connection people feel

towards gorillas.

It's a connection that has stayed

with me my whole life.

And it all began

with one special little gorilla.

Despite a difficult start in life,

Pablo grew into

a strong and charismatic leader.

He remained devoted to his family

until the very end.

This is some of

the last known footage of Pablo.

At 33 years old,

while defending his group

from a rival gorilla,

the great silverback was k*lled.

I will never forget him

or the impact he had on me.

The words I use are,

"There's more meaning

in exchanging a glance with a gorilla

than with any other animal I know."

And I stick by that.

I think that's true.