A New Home Assuming the project moves forward -- and preliminary work has already been completed -- the $12 million facility will be "the largest gorilla habitat sanctuary in the world," he says. However, the project cannot go forward until the money needed to complete the preserve has been raised. Currently, cramped conditions and noise from nearby roads can make social interactions among the gorillas difficult. At the new facility, however, "the design should give the gorillas plenty of places to play and just be gorillas," Connelly says. In that spirit, the new compound will be closed to visitors, just like the current facility. But the Foundation hopes to have a visitor's center to accommodate Koko's many fans -- and possibly even a two-way video system that would allow gorilla and human to observe one another. If all goes well, and Koko does have a baby, Patterson's research would enter another exciting phase. In particular, she is interested in finding out whether Koko will teach her infant to sign. If she does, it would be an example of passing along complex learned behavior that many researchers once believed only humans could accomplish. Even if Koko never reproduces, however, the refuge will still be important, Connelly says. It could, for instance, help house young, captive "bachelor males" who typically spend some time on their own before joining a social group, helping make captive populations healthier. And it will be part of the international network of conservation centers working to remind people of the importance of protecting free-living gorilla populations. While captive gorillas are important for research and education, Connelly notes that "the best thing to have is happy and healthy wild populations in Africa."

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