Orangutan's Incredible Reaction to Pregnant Zoo Guest Caught on Camera

A couple were stunned this week when their zoo trip attracted unexpected attention.

Filip Stachowiak and his pregnant wife Daria live in Singapore and visited the Singapore zoo when an orangutan took a particular interest in Daria.

As she stood near the enclosure, one of the primates came close to the glass and appeared extremely interested in the pregnant woman.

"He leaned against the glass and pressed his ear against the wall, we all could feel a sense of genuine connection, which touched us deeply," Stachowiak told Newsweek. "I had a huge grin on my face filming this interaction, while my wife's eyes watered behind her sunglasses."

As Daria presses her bump toward the glass, the orangutan, who is named Charlie, also comes close to the other side.

Charlie is a male Sumatran orangutan who was born in December 1977 in Zoo Negara, Malaysia.

He arrived in Singapore in 2005 and, having been hand-raised since he was young, is a big fan of people.

The 211-pound orangutan loves people watching and workers at the Singapore zoo who said he is particularly drawn to women and children.

A Mandai Wildlife Group spokesperson told Newsweek: "This curious behavior is not unique to Charlie as there have been many instances of great apes showing interest and being sensitive towards not only expectant ladies, but infants and children as well.

"However, Charlie has been observed to be the only one among the orangutans at Singapore Zoo to display this behavior when a visitor interests him."

While it isn't clear exactly why Charlie was so interested in the pregnant guests, orangutans are well known for their social structure and maternal instincts.

The bond between an orangutan mother and her young is said to be one of the strongest in nature. Orangutan mothers have a long-lasting and intimate relationship with their offspring and infant orangutans are completely dependent on their mothers for food and care for the first two years of their lives.

Despite growing up and becoming more independent, the young primates remain close with their mothers for most of their lives, even sharing the same tree for many years.

This long-term relationship with offspring is generally uncommon among mammals, but could be an example of why this particular primate was so interested in the pregnant guest.

"What was clear to us at the time was that Charlie reacted to the body language cues from my wife," said Stachowiak. "He was not reacting like this to anyone else while we were waiting for our turn to approach him, which surely left us wondering whether it was due to the pregnancy or something else.

"We have never seen anything like this before, but it seems that Charlie is a very sensitive soul."

After the experience, Stachowiak shared the footage of the unusual moment on Reddit where people were delighted by the interaction.

"We thought this was a unique experience worth sharing in a community that could appreciate it for what it was and r/aww seemed like a perfect fit," he said.

"The number of upvotes and the 91 percent upvote rate proved us right," he added. "Overall, we felt like the community's reaction was positive and we are glad we could share this unique moment with likeminded strangers."

UPDATE 09/06/2023 6 a.m.: This story was updated with additional comment from the Mandai Wildlife Group.