Koko the Gorilla has been in the news for a long time now. Born at San Francisco Zoo, Koko has spent most of her life at The Gorilla Foundation in Woodside. She first made news in the 1970s when her trainer Penny Patterson claimed that Koko was able to converse in "Gorilla Sign Language."
She is in the news again with this video, which shows her adopting two kittens. The video begins with the line, "Koko loves babies but gorilla babies are hard to come by so we introduced Koko to some other babies," and is followed by images of Koko getting to know the litter, reported the New York Daily News.
After some deliberation, Koko displays an affinity for a kitten named "Ms. Gray" while "Ms. Black" falls in love with Koko, reported SF Gate.
"Koko fell in love with one, and the other fell in love with her. Koko has adopted these two kittens into her family, and it has energized her world. Not only have Koko's maternal and play instincts kicked in, but she is signing more to her caregivers and generating new content every day that can be used by The Gorilla Foundation to create empathy for great apes," watchers are informed through the video, according to the Daily Mail.
In an expression of playful maternal love, Koko signs to caregiver Patterson, pointing to her head. The gesture is interpreted by Patterson as Koko requesting for a kitten to be placed on her head. Patterson obliges and in a show of tender affection, between new gorilla mom and adopted kitten, Ms. Gray is seen rolling around on Koko's head.
See if you can stop yourself from an "AWWWW " moment after watching Koko and her kittens.
