People have nicknamed her Pasika, a 26—year-old gorilla who lives in the jungles of the Virunga mountain range in Rwanda. In May, she gave birth to a cub, and in the summer, the «gray—haired leader» died unexpectedly – an old male who stood at the head of their pack. The females left without protection had to seek shelter in other flocks, but there they demanded a cruel payment: the death of the cubs.
A pack of gorillas lives by almost the same rules as a pride of lions. Everything is run by a powerful, strong male, often already in years — hence the nickname «gray leader». The females give birth to him and together take care of the offspring. They cannot survive alone, even despite the size and strength of these monkeys. If a gray-haired leader dies and there is a confident, strong son in the pack, the group can maintain the structure. Otherwise, the flock breaks up and the females seek refuge in other groups, but the males there do not need children from competitors. Pasika saw how her friend’s cub was killed, and made an unexpected conclusion for herself.
Mountain gorillas do not live alone, this is a well-known fact. Unless they are outcasts, renegades. But Pasika herself left and took her newborn baby. For his sake, in order to give at least some chance of life, she refused the patronage of other packs. And he will stay away from gray-haired leaders, even if it means a life of wandering and need. According to observers, the case is almost unprecedented.
There were many skeptics who gave reasonable arguments why Pasika and her cub were doomed to an early death. However, summer has passed, then autumn — for more than six months, a lonely gorilla mother with a small cub manages to survive. They are seen often enough that it was not an accident — researchers of the animal world are increasingly calling the gorilla a «Super-woman». There is not much information about how she solves her problems, but the fact is obvious — Pasika lives and brings up a child alone.
Who knows how Pasika’s fate will turn out? You have to take pictures from afar, with a large zoom, she does not let people near her. And they have no right to interfere in the life of wildlife. Perhaps her cub will turn out to be a male and will one day become the gray-haired leader of a new, powerful pack? In the meantime, the gorilla serves as a clear example that there is nothing stronger in the world than maternal love and it is able to motivate the most incredible actions.
