‘World’s loneliest’ gorillas are doing just fine, say Bristol zoo bosses

The threat of intruders means the gorillas now have to be locked into their house at night. Photograph: Adrian Sherratt

A rainy afternoon in Bristol but the troop of western lowland gorillas did not seem to mind the damp and were foraging for snacks of lettuce and cereal scattered around their zoo enclosure.

To the untrained eye, their expressions might be described as lugubrious, but Sarah Gedman, the curator of mammals at Bristol Zoological Society (BZS), insisted the apes were perfectly relaxed and in tune with each other. “They’re not sad at all,” said Gedman.