Staff Didn’t Know What Gorilla Was Holding, Until They Got Closer

staff didn't know what gorilla was holding until they got closer [Music] [Applause] gorillas are some of the most majestic creatures on the planet according to the world wildlife foundation they share 98.3 percent of their dna with humans this means they are able to exhibit human traits such as high-level intelligence and deep emotions one particular gorilla caught the attention of staff working at a primate sanctuary when he was caught doing something quite unusual when the staff got closer to him they knew this was a story they had to share with the world founded in 1996 ape action africa is a wildlife conservation organization based in the united kingdom to rescue and rehabilitate apes their goal is to save primates from the dangers of illegal bush meat and pet trades there are currently 280 rescued primates including gorillas chimpanzees and monkeys at ape action africa's mephu primate sanctuary in cameroon central africa when a certain orphaned gorilla arrived at mufu the staff wasn't prepared for what would happen next after almost 25 years in operation ape action africa has become one of the largest conservation projects in africa they have strived to keep the best living conditions for their primates and to protect them from potential threats in the wild the orphaned gorilla story of arriving at the sanctuary is similar to the hundreds of other apes who have entered their care now with social media the world is getting a chance to see how much their work is making a difference the community in cameroon is very supportive of the mufu primate sanctuary and many of the community members work or volunteer there the sanctuary also has an education program for local kids while the threats to african primates remain ape action africa and the sanctuary are doing what they can to help orphaned or injured apes return to a safe controlled and stable environment this doesn't come cheap because a year of care for the primates cost 337 000 on average when bobo the gorilla was just a baby his mother was taken away by poachers bobo was abandoned without his mother to help raise him so he needed outside help to survive luckily the staff at mufu primate sanctuary were able to take him in when he was two years old it took him some time to warm up to his new surroundings because it was an immense life change but eventually he showed his true colors bobo arrived a shy and timid orphaned baby gorilla at mafu but grew up to be a natural-born leader he was very strong and was known as the dominant ape at the sanctuary poachers wouldn't try to mess with the adult-sized bobo who weighed over 350 pounds his newfound alpha male status was something he took very seriously and he guarded that title with his life as the staff observed him they noticed something jarring about his personality although bobo the 350 pound alpha male gorilla ranked at the top of his sanctuary his true personality wasn't what most would expect from early on the staff were able to see how sweet of a gorilla he was bobo was intimidating on the outside but would remain calm and unbothered most of the time alyssa o'sullivan bobo's earliest caretaker thought the behavior he exhibited as an alpha male gorilla was quite strange she wanted to find out if there was something wrong with him when the other male gorillas at the sanctuary noticed that bobo wasn't acting like a typical alpha male they tried to dethrone him younger males kibu and nakamum once challenged bobo for his position said alyssa while bobo didn't want to get into a brawl with the other male gorillas he still stood up for himself and didn't let them take control over him bobo's behavior continued to not make sense for alyssa and she needed to make sure he wasn't a threat to both the staff and other primates the staff at the sanctuary would always notice how bobo would walk around the enclosure in a confident manner he knew he was the alpha and had the attitude to match alyssa made sure to keep a close eye on him and saw that his behavior changed dramatically instead of keeping watch over the others bobo would go off by himself into the long grass to hide when she got closer to bobo she noticed that he was hiding something that he didn't want the others to see the staff at the sanctuary were more than understanding of the odd behaviors exhibited by the primates because most if not all had been traumatized in some way guerrillas can experience trauma similarly to humans this meant that alyssa and the rest of the workers needed to figure out what was bothering bobo in order for him to go back to normal she seemed alarmed at his actions and wasn't sure if this was something that could be fixed mafu and their staff vowed to make sure that every primate that comes to them is given the best care possible they take their job seriously because they know how important it is to keep these apes alive and thriving seeing bobo not act in a typical alpha male persona was jarring for alyssa because it seemed rare to find him acting so secretive and aloof since she promised to keep all the primates safe she continued to keep a close eye on bobo the staff is aware that most of the primates at the sanctuary have gone through traumatic experiences which may result in post-traumatic stress disorder ptsd the staff is trained on how to treat the animals if this occurs in order to be sure that was what was going on with bobo alyssa needed to follow him around his behavior became more suspicious as he moved through the enclosure then she saw him holding something in his hands after following bobo around for a while alyssa saw him covering something in his hands she didn't want to get too close in case it would disturb or upset him alyssa looked all around her surroundings in the long grass by bobo but didn't see anything that was out of the ordinary it was clear that this was something that bobo wasn't hiding away but was keeping with him at all times she had never seen an ape act like this before alyssa knew she couldn't get too close to bobo although he was one of the more friendly gorillas he had recently become more distant around staff and the other animals she had to be really careful when stepping closer to bovo to get a better look at what he was keeping in his hands when she got closer she noticed that the object was in fact moving it had to be some sort of living creature bobo noticed alyssa and the rest of the staff getting closer to him and his creature so he got spooked and ran off into the overgrown grass it was clear that he was very protective over whatever he was holding alyssa tried to stay back but she was fixated on the tiny creature she tried as hard as she could to identify it but she wasn't able to get a good look after only getting a glimpse she still had no clue what it could be when bobo ran away from the staff he made sure to keep his little creature tucked in his paws he kept poking and prodding it to make sure that it was doing okay the weird part about that was the creature didn't seem to mind being handled by a huge gorilla the staff had suspected that the animal was a rodent but its behavior was starting to prove otherwise alyssa got out her binoculars to get a closer look it all started to make sense to alyssa when she got a clearer view using her binoculars this wasn't a rodent but it was actually a primate there was no way this could be a primate that was already cared for by the sanctuary the staff always made sure they knew the whereabouts of the almost 300 apes living there this primate had to have come from the wild and bobo's paternal instincts kicked in seeing it all alone the staff are experts in primates so it was only a matter of time until they found its true identity finally alyssa and the other staff members concluded that it had to be a galago the only way it could have found its way into the sanctuary's enclosure was from the surrounding forest nearby galagos are given the nickname bush babies because of their distinct crying sound mufu had never cared for a galago before and certainly wouldn't put it in the care of a giant gorilla it was quite rare to see a wild bush baby in the area and alyssa was impressed by how great of a job bobo was doing as its caregiver the bush baby showed no fear of bobo moving around his body and spending time hopping around in an open grassy area before choosing to return to bobo said alyssa the galago was certainly attached to bobo and trusted him as much as a biological parent alyssa knew the wild bush baby wasn't supposed to be at the sanctuary but couldn't help but feel touched by bobo's relationship with the galago elissa admitted bush babies are usually nocturnal so it is rare to see one and even rarer to witness this kind of interaction since galagos are nocturnal she was so perplexed why this one really wasn't bush babies do almost all of their daily activities during the night including hunting and feeding bobo would feed the galago breakfast in the morning and give him more care throughout the day so alyssa knew this bush baby wasn't normal alyssa shared that it was incredibly rare to have animals from an enclosed sanctuary in the wild interact with one another animals usually stayed within their own environments but that wasn't the case with bobo and the glago since mufu had a unique location in cameroon it was a bit easier for smaller animals to gain entry without the staff noticing soon the other apes in the sanctuary started to discover what bobo was doing and became intrigued it didn't take long for bobo's other eight friends to see that he was caring for the galago and they became interested by his actions their curiosity grew stronger by seeing their alpha male be so nurturing the little bush baby was happy to play in bobo's arms hopping off to explore the grass nearby before returning to bobo's hand alyssa said the other primates saw how much bobo loved the bush baby and started welcoming it with open arms bobo was aware that the other apes wanted to get closer to the galago but he wasn't sure that would be best alyssa noticed how he would keep the others at a distance from the bush baby in order to keep him safe and protected then bobo realized that the sanctuary may not be the greatest environment for the bush baby he lifted the little creature up to a tree branch over the enclosure giving it the opportunity to return to the wild this was the experience of a lifetime so alyssa knew it had to be recorded she and some of the other staff were able to film bobo's time caring for the galago for the world to see they posted the heartwarming footage on facebook with the caption our silverback gorilla bobo made a surprising new friend this week a wild bush baby she continued caregivers discovered him cradling the tiny primate during their morning checks and were amazed to see him handling it with the utmost care it didn't take long for bobo's story to go viral online with people all over the globe interacting with the video bobo's video with the bush baby received almost 2 million views and over 2 000 comments people were so touched by the way bobo cared for the galago noting that many humans don't regularly exhibit these kind of traits in real life and people say animals don't have feelings this is a perfect example of love too bad people aren't like this said facebook user don gotti smith bobo's story had great significance not only for the sanctuary but for all animal conservation organizations bobo was able to raise awareness about guerrilla endangerment and what it takes to keep these animals in a healthy environment the tropical rainforest in cameroon is disappearing quickly and poachers are on the rise so these gorillas need sanctuaries more than ever gorillas are also under threat when it comes to climate change disease and hunting availability an article in the atlantic called male gorillas love hanging around with infants proves how nurturing male gorillas are and why bobo's story makes so much sense the males whether silverbacks or subordinates will cuddle infants play with them welcome them into their nests and just plain hang out with them said anthropologist stacy rosenbaum rosenbaum goes on to say that male gorillas are often incredibly tolerant gentle and loving many of the infants they care for usually aren't their own these majestic creatures have been on the planet for thousands of years but their livelihood is more threatened now than ever before many live around the congo basin forest which is endangered due to local forest conversion from industrial agriculture projects according to the iucn red list every species of the gorilla is either endangered or critically endangered there are only a little over 100 000 gorillas left in the wild with several placed in zoos and sanctuaries similar to mufu gorillas are considered to be one of the world's smartest animal species some have been taught sign language how to make and use tools and complex ways of thinking these animals have deep emotions that can be used to laugh grieve develop strong familial bonds and even think spiritually one instance of a gorilla using high intelligence was in the republic of congo where a female gorilla used a stick to check the depth of a swamp before crossing humans share up to 99 of their dna with gorillas making them the closest living relative to humans gorillas have 25 different vocalizations which is how they communicate with one another for example they may grunt bark scream roar or belch and each of these sounds have a distinct meaning even with all the similarities they are still one of the most endangered animals on the planet a report from the united nations suggests that gorillas may disappear from the congo basin forest by the mid-2020s although gorillas remain in danger there's a reason for hope the internet is vast and people are sharing their passion for helping these animals with facts to back it up several official agreements have been made to protect gorillas from disappearing and volunteers are spending their time and money to make sure these animals are protected there is more meaning and mutual understanding in exchanging a glance with a gorilla than with any other animal i know said natural historian and broadcaster david attenborough