If you are a foodie, you know that each ingredient of a dish can have a major impact on the overall experience you will have when enjoying it. Some ingredients, like truffles, are prized not just for its flavor, but also for the difficulty involved in finding them. Truffles are a type of fungus that grows in the dirt and are notoriously difficult to locate. So difficult, in fact, that humans have employed the use of pigs and dogs to sniff them out in the wild so that a person can dig them up and sell them to high-end restaurants.

Humans love truffles whether they are sliced up and added directly to a dish, or used to flavor oils, or any number of things. According to a new study in the journal Primates, some great apes actually share our passion for the truffle.

This study was done in the Republic of Congo’s Nouabale-Ndoki National Park. Researchers watched four distinct groups of western lowland gorillas to learn more about their behavior. One thing that these gorillas often did was scratch at the soil on the forest floor. Many people assumed that this activity was to try to dig up grubs, but what they found was that they were actually looking for truffles (or, scientifically speaking, the fruiting body of the ascomycete fungus).

In addition to tasting great, this fungus is a good source of nutrition for both humans and gorillas.

Interestingly, the research found that foraging for truffles seems to be a behavior passed down from generation to generation, and varies greatly in popularity between groups. If a gorilla moves from a group that looks for truffles regularly into one that does not, they typically reduce the amount of time they spend foraging to fit in with the new group.

In a statement about the study, David Morgan (a conservationist at Lincoln Park Zoo and a member of the research team) said:

“This is an exciting finding for our understanding of gorilla foraging behavior, and we found indications of social implications of soil scratching within groups. For example, an adult female emigrated from one gorilla group where this behavior was rare to one where it was nearly a daily occurrence, and modified her habits.”

Studying gorillas can be difficult because researchers have to be extremely careful to either avoid being seen, or more often, to get the gorillas used to their presence. This can be dangerous since gorillas are extraordinarily powerful and if they decide to attack a human, the results can be devastating.

The lead author of this study, Gaston Abea, is an Indigenous Person in Ndoki and he took advantage of his cultures expertise when it comes to living in proximity to these great apes. In the past, Abea’s ancestors would hunt the gorillas, but now he is working to protect them. Abea is the first Indigenous Person in Ndoki to be the lead author of a peer-reviewed scientific paper, which is quite an accomplishment.

In the study, he said:

“My people’s traditional knowledge of these forests is endangered by modern lifestyles but is proving invaluable in continuing to study and preserve these ecosystems. Our ancestors used to hunt gorillas, now we protect them, and I hope to inspire other Ba’Akas to do the same.”

Harnessing this knowledge and experience is an excellent illustration of the fact that people of all cultures have something to contribute to the pursuit of scientific knowledge.

Learning more about both the behavior and the diet of these gorillas will undoubtedly help to keep the species safe long into the future. And, perhaps most importantly, the study proves that these great apes have excellent taste.

If you think that’s impressive, check out this story about a “goldmine” of lithium that was found in the U.S. that could completely change the EV battery game.