NATURE retraces the life of Titus, silverback leader, from birth to present reign, spanning a tumultuous period in the history of a species and a nation in The Gorilla King.

In 1974, renowned primatologist Dian Fossey introduced a young researcher named Kelly Stewart to a gorilla family Fossey was studying. Stewart, daughter of actor Jimmy Stewart, was the first to see a tiny new baby gorilla. She named him Titus, and her journal entry began the up-close observation of his life that researchers have continued to this day. Titus’s turbulent life story, from orphan to ruler and the challenge to his throne today, is chronicled in The Gorilla King.

At 33 years old, the 400-pound silverback Titus has ruled for nearly half his life, an astonishing feat given the early trials he faced. When Titus was four, his father was slaughtered by poachers. Shortly after, his infant sister was killed in a coup attempt by an interloper named Beetsme. It wasn’t unusual; when a male outsider takes over a group, he will kill all the infants in order to sire his own offspring. Titus’s mother and other sister fled, leaving him orphaned and abandoned.

In 1991, at age 17, Titus surprised researchers when he deposed Beetsme in a bloodless coup. Titus was entering his prime, but Rwanda was descending into the chaos of civil war, forcing researchers to flee. It created the only gap in his life’s record.

Follow the entire saga of Titus’s reign in The Gorilla King.

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Online content for The Gorilla King was originally posted April 2008.

New king on the mountain: Titus’s son, Kuryama, is now the leader of the “Beetsme” group.

When the phone rang and I heard someone from The Gorilla Fund on the line, I got all excited. I knew it would be an update about Titus, the gorilla featured in The Gorilla King, a Nature show that I worked on that aired last April (2008).

When last we left him, Titus’s son, Kuryama, had gained alliance and support from most of the gorillas in Titus’s group. Kuryama became their leader and left with them, leaving the massive silverback to form his own group from those that remained loyal to him.

Perhaps it was Titus’s age that helped him decide to reunite with Kuryama’s group. It is harder and harder for Titus to protect and lead his group.  At 33 years old, he is considered an old man by gorilla standards.

The amazing thing is that Titus, who lead the “Beetsme” group for 15 years, decided to be second in command to his son, Kuryama.

Family is such a strong and important part of gorilla life, I am happy to see that even with his new role, Titus is still garnering respect and attention from all in Kuryama’s group as well.

To learn more, read the story at the Gorilla Fund Web site. 

- Jill Clarke
NATURE producer 

While his prolific mating is a clear sign of the king’s success, this unique gorilla’s extensive family tree grew out of tragic circumstances.

At first, daily life for Titus was routine. He was a member of a stable group of happy individuals. The group even surprisingly allowed a young outsider to join them, which is very unusual among gorilla groups. Normally they will not tolerate outsiders. Tragedy struck when Titus’s father, “Uncle Bert,” was murdered by poachers. The young outsider, Beetsme, who had become close with Titus, could sense an opportunity. He exhibited classic takeover behavior and grew aggressive toward the females of the group. In a skirmish with Titus’s mother, “Flossie,” Beetsme struck her infant, killing it. Flossie and Cleo, Titus’s sister, subsequently deserted the group, leaving young Titus orphaned and abandoned.

For a time, Titus, Beetsme, and the other remaining young males formed a group of their own. But when another group disbanded, females from that group joined them, and Beetsme became the leader of the new family group. He drove away every other male, except for Titus, who he allowed to stay, possibly to help keep the group safe from outsiders. He had succeeded in eliminating competitors for what were now his females — or so he thought.

This image shows some of the offspring Titus is known to have sired. Images are not available of all of them, as some may have died or left the area. Click to enlarge.

Beetsme was unaware that Papoose, the dominant female, was growing rather fond of his young companion, Titus. Even researcher Martha Robbins agreed with Papoose’s judgment, joking in The Gorilla King that in her own opinion Titus was the more handsome of the two. Behind Beetsme’s back, Papoose was mating with Titus. It was the beginning of an impressive dynasty.

In the course of her research, Robbins began a series of paternity tests to see who was having the most reproductive success. The tests proved that Titus had fathered several babies with Papoose, among them, Pasika, Bukima, Turakora, and Kuryama (the male whose challenges to Titus’s reign are documented in The Gorilla King).

All told, researchers at Karisoke believe that Titus has sired over 20 babies, though they are still completing DNA tests to make sure. They do know beyond a doubt, however, that he has fathered at least 13 — still more than any other known mountain gorilla.

Not too bad for a gorilla who had such enormous odds to overcome.