DALLAS – A splashing gorilla’s sweet dance moves – captured on video at the Dallas Zoo – are prompting comparisons to “Flashdance.”
He’s not a “Maniac,” though his dancing is being likened to that of Jennifer Beals’ character in the 1983 movie. He’s Zola, a 14-year-old Western lowland gorilla. The video shows him just playing in a plastic pool, but his moves piqued the interest of zookeepers.
The Dallas Zoo posted a 30-second clip of Zola splashing and spinning around wildly on Tuesday. It was shot by zookeeper Ashley Orr.
“Zola’s ‘dancing’ is really just a play behavior (there was no breakdance music playing in the building, we promise),” the zoo wrote in a blog post. “Play is a natural behavior present in a wide array of animals. In fact, the presence of play can signify an animal is content or comfortable, and it is recognized as an indicator for general welfare.”
Zola is one of several gorillas at the Texas zoo.
In 2011, video of him dancing in a puddle at the Calgary Zoo, where he then lived, was viewed nearly 4 million times.
“He’s amazing,” someone can he heard saying at the end of the Dallas clip.
