Giant gorilla gently cuddles a tiny bushbaby in this sweet video
A 25-stone gorilla was photographed spending sweet moments with a tiny bush baby at the Mefou Primate Sanctuary in Cameroon.
In a heart-warming video posted to Facebook, Bobo, the silver-back gorilla, can be seen making friends with the bush baby, who weighs only 20 grams and is barely the size of one of Bobo’s fingers.
The adorable animal friendship was photographed by Alex Benitez, site coordinator at the sanctuary. Animal conservation charity Ape Action Africa later posted a video showing those photos.
"Our silverback gorilla Bobo made a surprising new friend this week - a wild bush baby! Caregivers discovered him cradling the tiny primate during their morning checks and were amazed to see him handling it with the utmost care - proving that gorillas really are the gentle giants of the forest,” the group captioned the video.
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Bobo is one of 300 animals rescued by Ape Action Africa. These animals also include chimpanzees and monkeys.
According to them, the 24-year-old gorilla’s groupmates were “desperately curious”, particularly his favorite female companion Avishag. But Bobo kept them all at a distance to ensure the safety of his new friend. The busy baby can be seen crawling around Bobo.
"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. When the game was over, Bobo walked purposefully off on two legs to deliver his friend safely back into the trees," the group wrote.
It is very rare to see bush babies because they are usually nocturnal. It is even rarer to witness one interacting with a mighty gorilla.
The bush baby showed no fear of Bobo. He would hop around in an open grassy area then returns to the gorilla.
"Bobo's group-mates were curious about the bush baby and hoped that he might share it with them, but Bobo kept the bush baby to himself. We have never witnessed a wild primate interacting with a rescued one at Mefou Sanctuary," a spokesperson of the sanctuary said.