The Huffington Post
 Joanna Zelman
01/27/11

Apparently humans aren't the only ones who know how to multi-task. Ambam, a Western Lowland Gorilla, has recently become famous for walking upright on his hind legs, MSNBC reports. Phil Ridges, a keeper at Britain's Port Lympne Wild Animal Park, speculates that Ambam may have begun walking on his hind legs when he had his hands full with logs - the gorilla probably discovered that he could both walk and carry items at the same time.

It's also possible that Ambam wanted a height advantage to peer over the wall and spot when keepers were bringing him food. Lastly, Ridges suggests that by standing upright, Ambam's hands don't get wet when it's raining. Quite good reasons indeed.

Ambam isn't the first gorilla to walk on his hindlegs. In fact, this unusual upright walking style was also seen in Ambam's father and sister.

Ambam is part of a group of critically endangered species at the park, which is run by The Aspinall Foundation, a group that also runs gorilla rescue projects in Congo and Gabon.

video: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/27/gorilla-walks-like-human_n_814994.html