Gorillas Sing While Eating: Researchers Discovered the Humming Behaviour

Updated 19 October 2026

Gorillas really do hum and “sing” while they eat. A study published in 2016 by researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, led by Eva Maria Luef, recorded wild western lowland gorillas in the Republic of Congo and gorillas in zoos making soft humming and singing sounds, often combined, while feeding on favoured foods. Silverbacks called most, which suggests the sounds may tell the group that the leader is busy eating and that it is time to feed or rest. Mountain gorillas make similar contented rumbles, and you may hear them on a trek.

What the researchers found

The team described two kinds of food-associated calls: a steady humming and a more varied “singing” with changes in pitch, which gorillas often used together. Each individual had its own recognisable pattern, so group members could tell who was calling. Calls were most frequent when gorillas were eating preferred foods such as seeds, aquatic plants or fruit, and adult males, especially the dominant silverback, called far more than females or young gorillas.

Why gorillas might hum

The researchers suggested the calls work as a social signal. In a group led by one silverback, his calls may mark the start of a feeding session and keep the group coordinated, with others settling to feed nearby. Lone males and silverbacks in groups called more than other animals, which fits the idea that the sound advertises the caller’s presence and status. The calls may also express contentment, much as people sometimes hum when enjoying food, though that is harder to test.

Mountain gorillas and other sounds

Mountain gorillas have a wide repertoire of sounds. The most common is a soft, double “belch” or rumble, a contented contact call used while feeding and resting that helps the group keep track of each other in dense vegetation. They also grunt to keep order, scream during disputes, give barking alarms, and silverbacks hoot and chest-beat in displays. Rangers in Bwindi imitate the rumbling call to reassure the gorillas as visitors approach. See our guide to how gorillas communicate.

What you may hear on a trek

During your hour with a family, listen as well as watch. Feeding gorillas often make low rumbles, lip-smacking and crunching sounds as they strip stems and leaves, and you may hear the silverback’s deeper calls. Stay quiet so you can hear them. The permit costs US$800, or US$600 in April, May and November. See our guides to gorilla social behaviour, gorilla tracks and signs and baby gorilla development.

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