A video showing a group of curious gorillas reacting to a snake in their enclosure has gone viral.
The video was posted to TikTok on June 24 by the user @silkystrokesurvivor and has since garnered more than 10 million views at the time of writing, as well as around 1.4 million likes.
The TikTok user captured the footage at Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park—part of the Walt Disney Resort near Orlando, Florida.
At the beginning of the video, one of the gorillas appears to notice something in the corner of its enclosure among the straw. Another gorilla joins and its curiosity is piqued by the as yet unidentified object.
Eventually, one guest at the park can be heard saying: "Oh, there's a snake!" That's awesome."
One of the gorillas then starts nervously taking swipes at the hay where the snake is with his hand, in an apparent effort to uncover the serpent.
It is unclear what kind of snake can be seen in the clip, but the serpent looks small and is brownish in color. One guest describes it as a "baby."
A few seconds later, more gorillas—including a large male—move into the shot, seemingly both transfixed and spooked by the snake, which has disappeared under the hay.
An employee from the theme park can be heard saying out of shot that the large gorilla was coming over to check what was going on, and if the others in the troop were okay.
"So just like humans, our gorillas are very curious about what goes on in their habitat," the employee said, noting that the serpent did not pose a threat to the great apes.
The group of gorillas continue to investigate the area where the snake was previously seen, before the serpent finally appears again.
A young guest can be heard saying, "They're going to squish it."
But instead the gorillas just continue to watch the serpent for several more seconds before the video ends.
Another clip captured by @silkystrokesurvivor shows more of what happened afterwards. One gorilla puts his face right next to the snake to examine it closely before running away anxiously when the snake moves. Another gorilla then starts beating his chest in the direction of the snake.
The Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail at the Animal Kingdom offers guests the chance to "explore a lush tropical forest inhabited by native African wildlife including gorillas, hippos, and exotic birds," as well as to "salute [their] resident troop of gorillas."
