It’s safe to say to giant mirrors aren’t exactly common in open nature, but one photographer decided to install a fairly large mirror in an open environment with plenty of wildlife. We all know cats and dogs can react funnily to mirrors and are sometimes even scared of their own reflections, but how do larger animals react to an image of themselves?
Xavier Hubert Brierre, a French photographer, decided to set up the experiment and he traveled to Gabon, a small country in Afrika with tons of wildlife and safari-worthy parks. He took his wife and his cameras with him on a trip and installed a mirror in places where wild animals would often pass by.
Xavier did his best to keep a low profile and cleverly installed his cameras in security boxes that were attached to a motion sensor. Whenever an animal passed by, the cameras would automatically record their candid reaction upon seeing a reflection of themselves for the very first time.
The reactions are hilarious, remarkable and very diverse. When the leopard sees his reflection, his actions are a little bit flirty as he thinks the mirror actually is a potential mate. The same can be said for an elephant, whose reaction is a bit timider but is still very funny nonetheless.
It turns out silverback gorillas aren’t big fans of their own reflections, as one of the gorillas actually tried to charge and assault the mirror thinking it was another silverback that posed a threat to him.
Another funny reaction can be seen from chimpanzees, who actually seem to understand the concept of the mirror and use it to their advantage. They’re checking out the parts of their bodies that they normally can’t see.
Taking the footage wasn’t easy despite the motion sensors, but Xavier felt like it was definitely worth it.
“I had to wash the mirrors on which leopards and monkeys left greasy streaks, traces of blood and feces left by insects hitting their surface ignoring their reflective property,” Xavier said to The Daily Mail.
“Myself and my wife spent many long days at the site, often being attacked by different types of fly and bees.”
Although it wasn’t easy for the two to keep a low profile in the open nature, the dedication of Xavier and his wife definitely lead to some amazing and hilarious footage. Nature works in amazing ways!
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