Orangutan janitor at Japanese Zoo
Here’s a clip of Gypsy, an Orangutan at the Tama Zoo that has learned to clean her enclosure after observing human zookeepers:
Gypsy likes to wipe windows, scrub floors, and manage the amount of grass in the enclosure. She also is known for her habit of fanning herself in summer and using a cloth as a makeshift raincoat whenever it rains. Apparently she can also pretend to read magazines. Since Gypsy is the oldest Orangutan at the zoo, the younger Orangutans in the enclosure treat her as an elder and sometimes copy her human-like behaviors.
Further footage of Gyspy’s janitorial work can be found on ITN’s YouTube channel. You may also remember her from an August 2007 Japan Probe post about her ability to take medicine by herself.
[clip from ナニコレ珍百景]
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