The 46 year old, celebrity ape, ambassador of all gorillas is no more: Good bye KoKo! Rest in Peace

"KOKO" is the name of a famous female gorilla who mastered most of the sign languages. The Gorilla Foundation has announced sadly the passing of their beloved, who died in her sleep at the age of 46. Koko, born on july 4, 1971 is a western lowland female gorilla. Her ability to communicate using 1000 hand signs has captivated the world and made her a pop culture phenomenon in the recent years.

From large apelike creatures to modern day humans, the evolution of man has become a lengthy process of change. Most people may have doubted this fact for a long time that chimpanzees, gorillas and humans share a common ancestry of large apes. The gap in accepting the history has been filled by Koko with her apparent ability of understanding and sharing feelings through a pattern of sign language. The capacity for language, understanding and communicating is one the defining traits of human existence. Koko's emotional depth, her understanding of things and her ability to communicate has shown us as humans a journey of our evolution.

"koko is no more, may her soul rest in peace"