Hair raising. Heart pounding. Hold your breath and hope for the best . . .
Such was the moment for this man in Uganda. He was seated by a pathway, holding his camera while his friend was filming him crouched with his face buried in his arm. Because a family of Gorillas were inspecting him. We’re talking a silverback with mom and kids. The entire troop stood in front of the man while one of the younger primates held on to the man, sniffing his head real good.
Can you blame him for not moving?
No sudden movements. Daddy gorilla pushes his kid away from the strange looking creature and the kids settle right behind the now frozen man. The silverback stares at the man for a good few seconds before he moves to sit with his family. Exactly a meter behind the man.
His name is John.
And by now, he probably is saying all the prayers he knows. If he isn’t a praying man, he is now. One of the younger gorillas goes back to investigating John, this time touching his hair. It’s wondering why John has so little hair. And why’s it silver too? Is John another silverback?
John’s friend begins narrating to him the situation at hand. There is a silverback with his three kids right behind him and a female is on his right. That’s one big happy and curious family. And John is an oddity to them.
“I just feel like one of the gang.”
Says John.
So what kind of shampoo do you use, John?
His face is one of surprise when the younger gorilla goes back to touching his hair. A female approaches from John’s left, sniffing his face and even giving him what looks like a kiss. They like his hair for some reason. It may not be much but it is silver. Good thing they’re a gentle band.
The silverback gets up and as it moves away, gives John one final glance with its massive body in full view. He’s not the alpha for nothing! The troop moves away from John, following the huge silverback and it’s obvious that John is so relieved. Breathe!
“Are you kidding me? I’m a gorilla!”
This went on for a full three minutes but to John, it must have seemed like an eternity. The two men exchange laughs at the incredible experience they were just part of but John must have needed to use the bathroom so bad.
One viewer made a great point,
“This is just a gorilla family taking a trip to the zoo to see the wild humans.”
These mountain gorillas have thicker fur to survive the colder temperatures. They are larger with shorter arms as compared to other lowland primates. They were once thought to be extinct brought about by habitat loss, hunting, and disease but it’s great to see them thriving once again.
Gorillas are fairly non aggressive as seen here with John’s encounter but when threatened, are not to be messed with. Alpha males will stand up and pound their chest, throwing things around while barking and unleashing loud hoots. You don’t want an angry silverback. Be like John who just let them have their way for a bit. He made new friends!
Check out John’s encounter with the primates in the video below!
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Source: YouTube, National Geographic, WWF
