Gorillas pissed, in the mist

As if size and strength were not enough to scare off human intruders, gorillas may have another tactic at their disposal: improvised weapons.

Researchers studying western gorillas in Cameroon have documented three cases in which the great apes threw clumps of grass or tree branches at humans.

"At first we didn't think too much of it, but then we realized that this is quite remarkable," said Jacqueline Sunderland Groves, who established the Wildlife Conservation Society research team working in the area.

"I don't think gorillas have been documented using this kind of weaponry before in the wild."

The observations were made during a three-year ecological study of Cross River gorillas (Gorilla gorilla diehli) on Cameroon's Kagwene Mountain.

A paper describing the incidents was recently published in the American Journal of Primatology. In it, the scientists suggest that the animals might have learned their unusual behavior from interactions with humans.

Gorillas Found Tossing "Weapons," Study Says