WATCH: Baby Gorilla Being Tickled, Going Bananas with Laughter Is a Gift for Us All

If you think Tickle Me Elmo is cute, ooh-ooh-ooh-ahh-ahh-ahh child, do we have a treat for you!

Her name is Lulingo and she’s a baby gorilla who is guaranteed to make you smile, laugh and cry (and maybe cry again, and coo and aww…) when you watch the video of this sweet, silly cutie going bananas with laughter while her caretaker tickles her tummy.

Lulingo was originally rescued from animal traffickers near Kahuzi-Biega National Park. Her mother was killed during the abduction, and according to Virunga.org, the same is thought to be true of her family’s dominant silverback male. Gorilla families will typically defend their young to the death, and so this tragic circumstance is encountered all too frequently.

In 2016, Lulingo was taken in and saved by the Gorilla Rehabilitation and Conservation Education Center (GRACE). It is the world’s only sanctuary for Grauer’s gorillas, a critically endangered ape that only lives in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

 

 

While we regrettably can’t ask Santa for a baby gorilla of our own, the clips of Lulingo and her caretaker monkeying around were captured on GoPro’s latest camera, the HERO6 Black.

GoPro and GRACE have partnered during the holiday season to share this heartwarming footage with the world, spreading both holiday cheer and awareness for the endangered gorilla sanctuary’s cause.

 

GRACE plans to release a longer film about its efforts in early 2018.  In the meantime, you can help more orphan gorillas in the Congo this holiday season, by visiting the #GoProForACause campaign page, by “adopting” a gorilla or purchasing a gorilla-inspired gift.