Your reactions to the article Harsh Live in the Wildhave been partly positive, which I appreciate, partly sceptical, which made me search the archives evidence that Richard sometimes plays with the young and that he is quite tolerant towards them.
You are right, such moments are rare but opportunities to capture them with a camera yet rarer. Our photographer Khalil Baalbaki spends an awful lot of time in the pavilion, yet we do not have much footage showing Richard as a playful father.
I know from several observations that when Moja or Tatu approaches Richard, he usually lets them tickle and bite and push him. Depending on his mood, he will tolerate the teasing for a longer or shorter time during which he appears pleased by the kid's presence. I dare call those happy moments with the young a game.
Moja treats her father with slightly less respect than her younger brother. She assaults Richard very often when he is lying on his tree stumps, taking a rest after his demanding job as a leader of the troop. I have never seen him get angry at her, shout at her or punish her severely. Perhaps he knows well than when he shakes his large arm a little, he will send Moja flying to the wood chips on the floor. I suspect that Moja expects such a reaction and takes it as part of the game - she always jumps up and tries again. Richard then usually gives up his favourite sofa and goes to find some quieter place. However, he has nowhere to hide before the little ones in the pavilion, which is his great disadvantage compared to human fathers, who can either go to their study at home or take a break from them at work.
The aforementioned games can only take place when Richard has full stomach. When he is hungry, he is rude to his wives and children alike. Everyone steps out of his way and waits till he is in a better mood. Moja is such a bad girl that she sometimes ignores the tension and tries to tease him anyway. She trespasses into his territory where he is having lunch - partly out of hunger, partly out of being sweet-toothed, and to a large degree out of sport.
The photo gallery contains photos from January 19, 2007. Back then, Moja was an only child and tried what her father would stand. She bit him, stuck her fingers in his mouth, pulled his fur, and tickled him everywhere she could reach with her nimble fingers. Richard was calm and tolerated all that. For a while, he looked like persuading Moja to stop: "Come on, Moja, you are a big girl but you are behaving like a baby gorilla". After several minutes of torment, he hid his head in the hands and sobbed: "Let me be, go and tease your mother for a change".
You have surely seen the video of Moja teasing her father. Richard does not look like he is particularly enjoying himself, yet he displays great patience and understanding for the little girl's rampage. I believe you will enjoy seeing the video again in the context of this report.
As usual, we posted a new video in the Revealed Plus section on Thursday. This time, Moja is getting ready for a dance lesson. You definitely don't want to miss that.
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