A Gorilla Family Curiously Examines a Mirror Without Realizing That They’re Looking at Themselves

In a fascinating clip from the BBC Earth program Gorilla Family and Me, Scottish wildlife filmmaker Gordon Buchanan captured amusing footage of his adopted gorilla family as they viewed themselves in a camera-backed mirror that he attached to a tree in order to gauge their responses. While Buchanan prepared himself for a raucous reaction, the curious primates instead calmly examined every aspect of the mirror including their own reflection, although Buchanan didn’t think that they necessarily made the connection that they were looking at themselves.

It’s been fascinating, but I would expect that it would take a lot more exposure to the mirror before the gorilla shows signs of self-recognition.