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[Snappydude]

How do I catch large wild animals? Cage traps, right? Do I have have to wait for them to randomly step on them or can I bait them with something? How do I do this?

...and what would be a good bait for, say, gorillas?

[magikarcher]

I don't believe there is a way to bait a creature... I have thought about this though, it would be a good addition to the game.

[Tubi2b]

I believe the traps are only for Vermin. And I also noticed if you build a trap the same way you build a cage, you can assign bait to it. You can choose fish, meat, gems and something else I think. But as for gorillas, I would keep an eye on where they wander to the most, pop a few cages; then keep building them closer and closer. Thats how I got my yeti in my other fortress. Then another came on the map (both females)... and somehow reproduced in separate cages... I changed raws and my Captain of the Guard had like 5 War Yeti.

[Blucher]

You just set the traps and hope something walks over it basically.

This part of the game is very interesting to me though, so I've tried a number of things.  I generally like leaving the terrain the way I found it (less a few trees of course), so major above-ground engineering projects are out (at least for the sle purpose of capturing animals).  However, most maps have natural choke-points you can enhance by removing ramps or placing a channel here and there.

One thing that works for me is putting a few 3x3 squares of traps out at various spots on the map and then forgetting about it.  In a few years I almost always have a number of animals in my stockpiles (at the least a breeding pair), captured from the local wilderness.

[Soadreqm]

If the animals in question are naturally violent, could you use a live pet (or dwarf) as bait? build a 3*3 square of cage traps, and chain a kitten to the center. Replace kitten as necessary.

[Ametsala]

If they're violent they'll attack as soon as they see something they don't consider their friend. (You don't see a pack of skeletal horses killing each other ...but watching them chace a very agile dwarf is quite fun) So using a bait should work.

Also the animals tend come to the same place often (or at least spawn from the same part of maps edge) so cagetrapping those areas should be quite effective.
Just make sure you've got enough cages and/or means to empty them.

[Snappydude]

I added the [trAINABLE] tag for gorillas, so I'm planning on making an army of war apes

[Retales]

If you're not in a real hurry, just build a line of cage traps at a point where animals are likely to travel. I built a cluster of traps between two small ponds in hopes to sometime catch a hoary marmot or two. Suddenly I noticed I was drowning in elephants! Now I have 10 of them chained at my entrance to keep thieves away, and I've slaughtered like 20 more, and there are still some lying around in a stockpile. Recently the elephants have started breeding.

I bet the dwarves are telling each other horror stories of the infamous, but legendary fort Boatmurdered, wondering if the elephants will bring a similar destiny upon Snakessteels! 

[numerobis]

If the animals are violent, you can bait them.  Otherwise, you can herd them into the traps by recruiting a dwarf or three.

[Snappydude]

Hm, yes. Thanks for the suggestions. Soon the goblins will be met with Gorilla Warfare

[Captain Xenon]

ifs interesting what is or is not trainable. olman i got trained beside a bear, but the snakemen, snailmen, lizardman, and slugman are all killers. dragons tame and collusus dont.

step 1 is cage traps in the areas wild things prowl. step 2 is to create barriers to movement that make the traps a chokepoint- be sure to have several traps for a herd if you want to laugh at the breeding and butchering later. walls work well, but channels are easier and faster to dig. step 3 is a well-placed animal stockpile, preferably with a DOOR and secondary trap for when the goblins or worse escape.