Watch a Silverback Inspire Us All With Spontaneous Full Body Dance Routine

Written by Sharon Parry
Updated: October 22, 2023
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Want to see a totally adorable video that will make you smile? We recommend this wonderful footage of a silverback, yes a silverback gorilla, giving a dance exhibition. Check out this guy’s moves – they are more than impressive!

Watch the Entertaining Video Here

This gorilla likes to shake, shimmy, and twirl.

Gorilla Habitat and Behavior

A male

western gorilla

is also called a silverback gorilla. These rare silver animals live in the western portion of

Africa

.

©Jurgen Vogt/Shutterstock.com

Gorillas are one of our closest living relatives and in the wild, they are found in several parts of Africa. However, they are found in captivity all over the world. They are the biggest of all the primates and like to live in rainforests and dense jungles. Sadly in many areas, their populations are threatened by human activity and habitat loss. Therefore, many zoos have breeding plans in an attempt to preserve the species. They can live for over 60 years in captivity and the mature males develop silver hairs on their lower backs which form a saddle pattern – hence the name ‘silverback’.

They can grow to 300 and 485 pounds and reach over five and a half feet in height. Even though they are unbelievably strong and powerful, they are actually quite shy. These guys would prefer to avoid confrontation if they can. Gorillas tend to live in family groups that have male leaders – either a father and son or a pair of brothers. The rest are females and younger individuals. They are mainly herbivores and eat most parts of plants including twigs and buds which they are able to pick off with their ‘hands’.

Silverback Dance-off Routine

Silver Animals - Silverback Gorilla

Sometimes bored zoo animals, like this gorilla, will resort to entertaining antics.

©iStock.com/gemadrun

Take a closer look at some gorilla dance moves. With ‘Maniac’ from the movie ‘Flashdance’ pounding in the background, our gorilla friend is living his best life in a huge tub of water. He twirls, crouches, and pounds the water, sending it all over the enclosure. This is not an animal that you would want in your bathtub at home!

He takes a break and brushes his hands across the surface of the water, clearly enjoying the sensation on his palms. Obviously, the video has been edited to repeat his movements and to keep the action in time with the music, but the pure joy is so real. Gorilla dancing should be a thing!

The photo featured at the top of this post is © Pavel Chagochkin/Shutterstock.com


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About the Author

Dr Sharon Parry is a writer at A-Z animals where her primary focus is on dogs, animal behavior, and research. Sharon holds a PhD from Leeds University, UK which she earned in 1998 and has been working as a science writer for the last 15 years. A resident of Wales, UK, Sharon loves taking care of her spaniel named Dexter and hiking around coastlines and mountains.

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