Pair of male gorillas set up safe space at San Diego Safari Park

“We see this all the time in the wild,” says San Diego Zoo gorilla therapist Elaine Silverback. “Monroe and Frank had been living in a troop led by 50-year-old Winston, but when they reached sexual maturity, things started to get tense. Frank was getting into arguments with Winston, and Monroe simply wasn’t getting along with the troop’s females. It became clear that Frank and Monroe needed to leave home in order to live the life they wanted. It’s just a fact of life that some male gorillas simply will not develop the, ah, potential to breed. Their interests just lie elsewhere. One morning about a month ago, I noticed that Frank was using a burlap sack to keep his feet dry as he walked. We took to calling it his Frankie Blankie. Imagine our surprise when he later used a whole bunch more burlap sacks to construct a tasteful glamping tent for Monroe! I guess it’s true what they say about bachelors and good taste.”