The San Antonio Zoo pulled out all the stops to celebrate one of its gorillas, throwing him a Batman-themed birthday party complete with decorations, treats and plenty of attention.
The birthday boy was Shana, a 24-year-old silverback gorilla who appeared more than happy to take part in the unusual celebration.
In footage shared by the San Antonio Zoo, Shana can be seen racing around his enclosure and checking out everything the staff had prepared for him.
At one point, he grabs a cardboard box decorated with black-and-yellow Batman logos and tosses it across the grass.
Then it was time for the food.
Shana wasted little time helping himself to the birthday treats, including what appeared to be his cake. Since he was the only guest, nobody seemed too concerned that he took the entire thing for himself.
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One viewer joked, “Took the whole cake 🤣🤣🤣.”
Shana then grabbed a watermelon, broke it apart with his hands and quickly started eating it.
The celebration also included a sign reading, “Happy 24th Birthday, Shana,” along with more Batman-themed decorations placed around the enclosure.
With 50 Cent’s “In Da Club” playing in the original video, Shana strutted around the area, seemingly taking in all the attention and birthday surprises.
Viewers loved the effort zoo staff put into making his big day special.
“This is one of the funniest and sweetest things when people do this kind of stuff for animals 😂,” one person wrote.
Another viewer made a playful reference to the classic Batman theme song, writing, “Shanananana Batman!”
Shana may be 24, but he could still have plenty of birthdays ahead of him.
According to Encyclopedia Britannica, gorillas typically live around 35 years, although some can live much longer in captivity. Zoo gorillas benefit from regular food, veterinary care and protection from many of the dangers they would face in the wild.
Some gorillas living in captivity have survived well into their 40s.
If that holds true for Shana, the silverback could have many more birthday celebrations ahead of him — whether Batman makes another appearance or not.