Mother Gorilla Gently Cares For Her Newborn Baby In Human-Like Way

As humans, it’s easy to separate ourselves from nature and other wild animals, but the truth is, we’re not all that different.

That’s easy to see when we look to one of our closest relatives, the gorilla. They may look similar to us and have complex social circles like humans, but their mannerisms mimic us in other ways as well.

Just take Calaya, for example. She’s a western lowland gorilla living at the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington, DC.

A few years ago, she was filmed giving birth to her first baby, a male gorilla named Moke, and it was incredible to see how nurturing and human-like she was when caring for her infant.

The zoo shared in a blog post that “Animal care staff were surprised at how quickly Calaya and her infant bonded, given that Moke is her first offspring.”

“She cleaned the baby, cleared his nasal passages, and gently cradled him—exactly what the primate team hoped she would do,” they added.

According to the World Wildlife Fund, western lowland gorillas are critically endangered, though their exact numbers are unknown.

Given their conservation status, witnessing the birth and mothering of little Moke is that much more meaningful.

You can watch the incredible birth in the video below:

Since that time, Calaya and Moke have been doing great.

The zoo shared an update video featuring the two enjoying their first few weeks together and it’s beautiful to see:

Moke has grown up quite a bit since then, but he’s still the baby of the pack! The zoo revealed that Moke is always playing pranks on people and having fun with his mom.

You can see Calaya and Moke having a light-hearted wrestling match in the video below: