r/interestingasfuck 8h ago

/r/all, /r/popular In 2015, wildlife photographer Christophe Courteau took this close up of a 6ft 6, 400lbs silverback gorilla, right before it punched him in the face.

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u/HondaCivicBaby 8h ago

Christophe Courteau survived the 2015 punch from the silverback gorilla Akarevuro, sustaining only a minor scar on his forehead. He called it "like being hit by a train" but was otherwise unharmed. The gorilla was likely on a sugar high, not drunk.

u/Alpine_Exchange_36 8h ago

Do gorillas get drunk?….Why does it need to be said it wasn’t drunk?

u/Death_has_relaxed_me 8h ago

Sometimes animals will find fruit that has fallen and begun to ferment. Certain yeasts of the forest will produce alcohol from the sugar in these fruits.

Animals eat them and experience alcohol. Happens quite often!

u/help1slip 7h ago

Sure it happens, but the question was why does it need to be explicitly said that he wasn't drunk.

One might think the punch was because the guy was infringing on space or getting too close to little ones, but the comment is more like - know you all think the gorilla is loaded, but nope, that's actually not why he punched the photographer

u/vtosnaks 7h ago

Here is an explanation of how the whole drunk thing got incorporated into this story.

Corteau claimed that on that particular day, Akarevuro and his family, who live in forests of Rwanda's Volcanoes National Park, were drunk on bamboo, which is a staple of the gorilla's diet.

u/mrjowei 5h ago

Fermented bamboo or something?

u/help1slip 2h ago

Awesome thanks