Koko the gorilla has died

[Catherine]

Koko the gorilla has died at the age of 46.   
Somehow the world seems less bright today.

http://time.com/5318391/koko-gorilla-dead/

Koko was a special gorilla and we will all remember her fondly. The article has a video of her when she met Robin Williams. It was hilarious. They both were funny people and understood each other's humour.  It also has videos of Koko with her cats. She did love having pet cats and they loved her. No one thought about an "animal" having a pet.


Koko taught the world that gorillas are more than we realized. She learned to actually communicate with sign language. Over time she developed a vocabulary and could understand and communicate concepts.
She was a loving and caring person and she will be missed.

[Tobi]

Dear Koko. Yes I do remember her well, and remember she loved cats. Blessings to her Soul.  

She was a lovely sweet natured Being, and will be very much missed.

[Catherine]

We have lost too many beautiful people lately. This one I wasn't expecting. 
I am sure her last cat will miss her. 
I like to think of her seeing Robin Williams again. The two can laugh and tickles and run free together like the free spirits that they are.

[Catslave]

Lovely being she was sad loss to the world.

[Catherine]

She was a special lady and we will all miss her.

[Tobi]

I was reading more about Koko today. Yes she was a real Lady. When asked what she thought was the meaning of life, she replied "People be polite." and "People have goodness."

It's so sad that she always wanted a baby and never had one; even though she was introduced to a young male once, they ended up being friends and didn't mate.

Bless her Soul where she has now gone

[Catherine]

It is too bad  that she never had children. I wonder why not. I suppose she could have fostered a baby for another gorilla, but they usually try to foster babies with actual gorilla troupes. That socializes them to live with other gorillas. 
Maybe Koko was meant to be a unique bridge between our two species. It gave us an understanding of the complexity and depth of gorilla thought. If she had been raising children she wouldn't have been able to give her life to the job. 
Think of her as the gorilla version of Jane Goodall.

Koko had a unique roll in interspecies communication. We will never be able to see gorillas the same because of Koko.
I hope they find some way to honour her work now that she is gone.