A shocking video has captured the moment an orangutan savagely threw a possum out of its Perth Zoo enclosure as visitors watched on in horror.
It is understood that a possum made its way inside the orangutan “treehouse”, which then caused the orange giant to forcibly throw the marsupial out of its territory.
Once rid of the freeloader, the orangutan continues to casually climb up its treehouse.
The shocking footage was posted to Reddit on Saturday by one of the visitors, captioned “Orangutan at Perth Zoo launching a possum”.
The user then revealed further context into the orangutan’s savage act.
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“It was thrown into another enclosure with 2 orangutans,” they added.
“(The orangutan) was throwing the possum around on the ground at first, then chased it up the poll (sic) and started poking it with a stick.”
A spokesperson from Perth Zoo told Daily Mail Australia that the possum was spotted alive after the intense slingshot.
“Our animal experts have confirmed that this possum took advantage of the cosy warm orangutan nest during the cooler weather, and on this occasion, the orangutan was alarmed to find an unknown occupant in their bed,” the spokesperson said.
“Rest assured the possum was sighted scurrying off after being evicted. They are a very robust species.”
The spokesperson continued, explaining how possums have a tendency to make their way into orangutan enclosures which are on higher ground.
“The orangutan habitat is an outside environment, and possums, who also live at height, just like the orangutans, have been known to inhabit the above-ground territories,” the spokesperson said.
“Whilst every effort is made to prevent them from entering, the sheer height provides some challenges and sometimes the orangutans evict the odd possum themselves.”
After the video gained traction, people flooded the comments in both fits of laughter and sympathy.
“This is horrifying and I can’t stop laughing,” one user said.
“Bloody hell, that was like an Olympics level discus throw,” another added.
“Can u guys stop making fun please!!!” one wrote.
“Aww poor possum!” wrote another.