The Ugandan mountain gorilla, imploring you to go easy in the comments section. (Image: YouTube video screenshot)
Somewhere in the mountain forests of Uganda is a three-year-old ape with a flair for online multimedia production.
As Fox 6 reports, a filmmaking duo from Amsterdam was shooting video of wildlife in Uganda earlier this year in order to create a virtual reality safari experience when they encountered an inquisitive young gorilla. Said gorilla took charge of the pair's camera for a few minutes, examining it carefully, poking at its various knobs, dials, and buttons, and even licking the lens.
Fortunately for the YouTube-viewing world, the camera was on the whole time, and the filmmakers have uploaded the footage. Below is the three-minute video, in which the gorilla is endearingly curious—and refreshingly unconcerned about upping his subscriber count. (Though the intense concentration and muffled scratching could qualify as ASMR, one of YouTubes hottest trends.)
Not since Snapshot Serengeti has there been such an intimate, so-close-you're-up-their-nose look at wildlife. Inspired by the gorilla-cam footage they inadvertently ended up with, the Amsterdam duo has named their virtual reality company "VR Gorilla."
Every day, we track down a fleeting wonder—something amazing that's only happening right now. Have a tip for us? Tell us about it! Send your temporary miracles to cara@atlasobscura.com.