One time, I was at a local bar for trivia night, and we were on the final question. The whole room went quiet as the host asked, “What is a group of gorillas called?” My team stared at me, eyes wide, because they know I am filled with useless information.
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I panicked for a second, thinking about lions and prides, seals and herds. Then the answer hit me! We won the round, and now, every time I think of gorillas, I can’t help but smile because knowing what a group of gorillas is called really WAS useful!
What Name Do We Call a Group of Gorillas?
Gorillas live in family groups of five to 30 that zoologists call troops.
The name stems from a clear group hierarchy, similar to the military: Troops are led by a single dominant male, usually a silverback, who protects and guides the family. This is a reflection of how commanding officers handle security and issue commands to those below them.
Sometimes, people who study gorillas will refer to a group as a band.
This is likely because they all move in sync under the direction of the silverback, whether they’re looking for food, grooming, or playing. However, they will usually use band to describe a smaller or less organized group; troop is definitely the more common term.
What Part of Speech Is Troop?
Troop is a collective noun.
A collective noun is a term for two or more living or inanimate things: a team of researchers or a bunch of bamboo shoots. As with other collective nouns, troop remains singular, no matter how many gorillas there are following the silverback’s orders. When you use troop, understand that you’re already referring to more than just one gorilla. But if you need to specify exactly how many gorillas, just add the correct number:
- A troop of 18 gorillas is about the average size in the wild.
- The entire troop of nine gorillas refused to eat the McDLTs.
However, when referring to multiple groups of gorillas (and most other animals), the terms take plural forms:
- If three crashes of rhinoceroses were running at me, I’d be pretty nervous.
- I inadvertently found myself swimming with over 68 smacks of jellyfish. Oh no!
Why Do We Want To Know What a Group of Gorillas Is Called?
Knowing that a group of gorillas is called a troop could very well be the winning answer for your team on trivia night. Also, groups of animals are often cleverly (and amusingly) named:
- A business of ferrets: Ferrets are busy and inquisitive creatures; it seems like everything is their business.
- A parliament of owls: Owls are traditional symbols of wisdom, so some have likened them to a legislative body like Parliament. (Although, I’m not sure I always see the correlation between wisdom and lawmakers …)
To learn other interesting facts about gorillas and other animals, check out these resources:
👉 BUY – Amazing Gorillas! (Wildlife Conservation Society)
👉 BUY – The Fascinating Animal Book for Kids: 500 Wild Facts!
You can also take a break from learning about animals and have some fun reading our blogs on silly subjects like cupcake puns and tongue twisters. But before you do that, tell us your favorite term for a group of animals (besides a group of gorillas, of course) in the comments!
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