Gorilla Carries toddler

Gorilla Carries toddler,A "Gorilla carries toddler" video has gone viral on YouTube. While it was shot over two decades ago, the thought of a 300-pound gorilla carrying around a baby is unsettling. What's more, the child's father deliberately placed the child in the animal's enclosure, sparking a debate on safety. However, he may have proved critics wrong who believe the big apes are aggressive and a danger to man. If you're thinking this is "strange news," you're dead-on.


According to a report on Monday from New York Daily News, conservation activist Damian Aspinall released a tape he shot over 20 years ago. The footage, while quite shocking, is not what you may think as it starts playing. Over fears of a backlash, he decided to keep the video private until now.
In the YouTube video, a large ape carries a toddler named Tansy around like a doll as the child plays with grass. The video, shot at Howletts Wild Animal Park in Kent shows how gentle the ape is with the baby.

The tape of the gorilla carrying the toddler sparked a debate about the man's decision. On the one hand, there are those who believe behavior from large primates is unpredictable and the tape does not tell the entire story in this bit of strange news.

Critics of the gorilla video claim that Aspinall's case represents something rare; he and his family grew up with the apes and were accepted into the gorilla ranks.

Others claim that the tape counters the long-held belief that apes are mean, viscous and would tear humans apart if given a chance.

The toddle carried around by the gorilla in the footage is now 22. Tansy spoke to ABC News and said she has nothing but fond memories. In the video, now viral, it even shows the baby petting the ape and going down a slide with it.

Aspinall says he now wants the video to help raise awareness of the nature of the apes to prevent them from fading away as an endangered species.

As the gorilla carries the toddler, it is apparent that in this case, the child was seen as a member of the ape's family and posed no danger. In fact, it is fairly common for wild animals to adopt other species -- even humans -- while acting as surrogate parents.

source: examiner