Silverback Gorilla Shows Off Strength In Front Of Zoo Visitors

Imagine going to the ZOO to visit all those exotic animals, only to have a 375 pound male gorilla lunge at you in his enclosure! That is what Kijito, the oldest silverback male at the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha did, repeatedly - we might add - at the visitors in the gorilla enclosure. He sure likes to show that he is the alpha!

Glass or not, that thing is scary! The man in the video doesn’t seem fazed at all by what the huge mammal is trying to achieve, but Kijito sure seems confused that he can’t reach his distant cousin on the other side.

According to the ZOO’s CEO and executive director, the visitors aren’t doing anything to provoke the gorillas. “It’s just what male gorillas do. They just exude that dominance and they want to show that any way they can, and they make a lot of noise doing it."

The clip shows the man looking at the male, as he is deep in thought, when suddenly the gorilla jumps at the glass and smacks himself senseless. Apparently, this is not unusual behavior for Kijito - about a year ago, the dude managed to slam himself so hard against a window, the glass pane cracked, but luckily didn't shatter. No one was injured.