Columbus Zoo Gorilla Shares Sweet Moment with Newborn Baby Visiting Their Habitat

A gorilla's adorable interaction with a newborn baby at an Ohio Zoo is going viral.

Footage of the sweet moment, posted by Hannah Pearson on TikTok, has accumulated 4.1 million views. In the video, Pearson holds her two-month-old baby Noah close to the glass of the gorilla exhibit at the Columbus Zoo in Ohio.

At first, the gorilla closely observes baby Noah while the child lies in his mother's arms. To Pearson and the rest of the onlookers' amazement, the gorilla then makes kissing gestures towards Noah as if the animal is trying to kiss him through the glass. 

Pearson told Storyful that one of her and her husband's favorite activities is to visit the gorilla exhibit with their children. 

"We have previously seen people interact with gorillas, kids specifically," Pearson told Storyful. "So we decided to sit next to the glass with our two-month-old to see the gorilla's reaction." 

One TikTok commenter identified t -

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he gorilla as Mo'ana, a Western Lowland gorilla that lives at the Ohio zoo. Other TikTok users shared their reactions to the sweet video online, with some comments mentioning that gorillas "are more human than you think.🥰"

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According to the Smithsonian's National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute, the Western Lowland gorilla is critically endangered due to poaching and is native to Gabon, Central Africa Republic, Cameroon, and other countries in the Congo Basin.

Western Lowland gorillas are typically “quiet, peaceful, and non-aggressive animals” and interact using grooming behaviors with other primates. Like other gorilla species, they can tolerate infant play behavior and are affectionate with their young.

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