Orangutan Gets Introduced to a Mirror, and the Result Is Pure Diva Energy

Everyone is probably familiar with the expression “monkey see, monkey do.” Apparently, this old phrase holds true for other primates, such as Orangutans.

Just look at Amber, the Orangutan in this video. She recently got to examine her reflection in the mirror for the first time, and she had an absolute blast!

Oh, Amber… She definitely gives off diva vibes, LOL!

She just takes her time, really looking at her face and mouth from all kinds of different angles. There’s a lot of curiosity here. You can tell that she is probably thinking, “Oh, is that what I look like from that angle?”

She’s definitely having a good time checking herself out.

Unsurprisingly, the Internet was completely enamored with Amber’s preening gazes. Many people in the comments section admitted to examining their own reflections in front of the mirror in a similar fashion. TikTok user Delilah xx wrote, “POV me going home and making faces in the mirror to see what I looked like out when I made an expression.”

However, some people in the comments section, such as TikTok user kitajc, proposed that this behavior is common for some animals when they wrote, “Self-aware animals tend to make weird faces/gestures/poses in mirrors because they like to examine parts of their bodies they don’t get to see often.”

That’s an interesting point to think about. But is it true? And how self-aware are animals in general?

Animal Awareness And Mirrors

There has been much debate over which animal species are able to recognize their reflections and what that says about their level of self-awareness. Orangutans and other primates, such as Chimpanzees, have passed the mirror recognition test since scientists began administering it in 1970.

This test was designed to determine if animals showed signs of self-awareness when they encountered a mirror. Only a handful of animals have displayed such signs. Most do not, and numerous species have exhibited behaviors that scientists deem inconclusive in determining self-awareness.

Orangutans, like Amber in the video, first passed this test in 1973 when they were able to identify markings on their bodies using a mirror. However, gorillas have not conclusively been able to do this. Neither have many species of monkeys, which typically consider their reflections to be other monkeys.

More in Science

Many dog parents have likely seen their canine companions reach a similar conclusion about their reflections when they are confronted with a mirror.

Conclusion

Amber, the Orangutan, definitely knows that she is looking at herself in the mirror. The question is, is she examining her mouth and teeth so that she can clean them later on, or is she simply passing the time, entertaining herself, similar to how humans like to take selfies?

Given how much she positions her mouth at different angles, we think she is trying to gauge how she looks. While not every Orangutan might necessarily examine their teeth in a mirror this way, it is possible that Amber learned this behavior by observing another Orangutan or even a human doing something similar.

In addition to recognizing themselves in the mirror, Orangutans are also capable of social learning. Scientists have observed different Orangutan groups in the wild using leaves as napkins to wipe their faces or gloves to help them while handling spiny fruits. Not all Orangutan groups do this.

According to scientists, these are learned behaviors that are passed down from elder Orangutans to the younger generation. So, it is possible that Amber is reenacting a behavior she learned from observing another Orangutan or a human.

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