LibGuides: Primates: Dian Fossey

Photo Taken by National Geographic. Dian Fossey in Rwanda

Retrieved from: https://gorillafund.org/who-we-are/dian-fossey/dian-fossey-bio/

Dian Fossey was an American primatologist and conservationist known for her work with mountain gorilla groups in Rwanda mountain forests from 1966 until her murder in 1985. Like Jane Goodall, Fossey was a student of Louis Leakey. Gorillas in the Mist, a book published two years before her death, is Fossey's account of her scientific study of the gorillas at Karisoke Research Center. Specifically looking at the social and familial interactions. The book was adapted into a 1988 film of the same name.

Notable Works

Gorillas in the Mist by Dian Fossey
Call Number: QL737.P96 F67 1983

ISBN: 0395282179

Publication Date: 1983-08-01

Fossey's extraordinary efforts to ensure the future of the rain forest and its remaining mountain gorillas are captured in her own words and in candid photographs of this fascinating endangered species. As only she could, Fossey combined her personal adventure story with groundbreaking scientific reporting in an unforegettable portrait of one of our closest primate relatives. Although Fossey's work ended tragically with her murder, Gorillas in the Mist remains an invaluable testament to one of the longest-running field studies of primates and reveals her undying passion for her subject.

Vocalizations of the Mountain Gorilla
Fossey, D. (1972). Vocalizations of the mountain Gorilla ( Gorilla gorilla beringei). Animal Behaviour, 20(1), 36–53. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0003-3472(72)80171-4
On the basis of 2255 hr contact with free-living gorilla, and considerable observation of two captive infants, sixteen types of vocalization are described. Some of these could be grouped to give twelve basic categories. For each of the sixteen types data are presented on the frequency with which it is given by each age/sex class, the contexts in which it is given, the nature of the responses elicited from the various age/sex classes, etc.

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Last updated on Jun 23, 2025 4:49 PM