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18 Shutters clicked and cameras flashed, startling the already
apprehensive gorilla. Charles noticed a strong odor coming from Willie B.,
which a silverback emits when he is alarmed or nervous. “It’s okay, Willie,”
Charles told him. Then the clouds opened up, and rain began to fall. When
Willie B. felt the strange sensation of raindrops, he ran back to the safety
of his concrete box.
19 Later in the day, after the press and the public had left, Charles once
again coaxed Willie out into his new home. This time Willie ran to a big oak
tree and snapped off one of its branches. He dashed about the habitat.
Then he went to the top of the hill and looked down at all of the land
around him. It seemed to the keepers that he was claiming the land as his
own, posturing as male gorillas do in the wild. The echo of clanking metal
doors and the hum of fluorescent lights were now a part of Willie’s past.

20 After exploring his new land for some time, he walked down to the
glass and sat, staring at his keepers. Although he was still alone, plans were
being made to introduce Willie to a couple of female gorillas in the hopes
that they would breed a new generation of gorillas. He had lots of land on
which to roam, but he still sat by the glass most of the time, watching his
visitors. After spending six months alone in his new habitat, the day came
for Willie to meet two female gorillas, Katie and Kinyani. Their “first date”
didn’t go as well as some had hoped.

21 The smaller, but more socially experienced Katie dominated Willie
from the start. She ran around the enclosure and chased him for a few laps,
with Kinyani quickly joining in. In his attempt to run away, Willie stumbled

and fell over backwards. Willie clearly had some lessons to learn about
standing his ground—and these two females were going to teach him.

generation A generation is a group of people or animals who are about the same age.
dominated If someone dominated another, he or she was more powerful and
controlled what the other did.

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