The Detroit Zoological Society is celebrating World Gorilla Day on Monday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Detroit Zoo's Great Apes of Harambee.
Zookeeper talks will be held at 11:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m., offering fun facts about half-brothers Pende, Kongo and Chip, the three silverback western lowland gorillas who live at the Detroit Zoo.
Guests will be able to see how they measure up against the arm span of a gorilla and replicate their diets by weighing plastic fruit.
"World Gorilla Day gives Detroit Zoo visitors a chance to celebrate the largest of the great apes while learning about the challenges they face in nature and what we can all do to help," said Scott Carter, DZS chief life sciences officer.
DZS will also collect used cell phones for recycling during World Gorilla Day. The mining of an ore called coltan is having devastating effects on the habitats of endangered gorillas and other wildlife living in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Coltan is an essential component of smartphones and many other electronics. By recycling old phones, the coltan can be used again.
