Baboon family enjoy lazy afternoon while lying in awkward looking body positions

Going on a safari in the African wild gives people the opportunity to observe and come close to wild animals in their natural environment. Among all the species of wildlife found in the African bush, the chacma baboon is probably one of the most entertaining animals to watch. The chacma baboon is one of the largest of all monkeys. It’s not very hard to spot the various similarities in behavior between that of a baboon and a human. For this reason, our closest relatives can make for entertaining viewing and it is always worth spending a little longer to observe the entertaining behavior of these primates. It was during a late afternoon safari in the Kruger National Park when we stopped in a dry riverbed. In the distance we noticed a small troop of baboons. The baboons were busy walking in our direction, but they were in no hurry. As the baboons came closer, we could see that many of them had enough of the long hot day and decided to stop and relax in the sand not too far away from us. We sat and watched the antics of the baboon family. After a while the baboons were scattered all along the riverbed. I suddenly noticed all the different body positions many of the baboons were in. It was awkward looking at first but soon I could identify with a few of the body positions in which many of the baboons were lying in. It was really funny to watch as it made me think of myself stretching out and being lazy on a Sunday afternoon. I started filming the various hilarious looking positions many of the baboons were lying in. Some of the baboons were lying on their sides, looking like they are chilling on the beach. My attention was drawn to a large male baboon, getting some attention from his lady while lying with his legs open, not having a care in the world. Another baboon had its face down and bum in the air while getting groomed by a caring family member. Other baboons were lying on their backs with one arm and one leg up in the air. It was like watching people lying on the beach and we could not stop laughing. One particular baboon was lying on its back, doing what seemed like a hamstring stretch, looking very comfortable in that position. It looked like none of these baboons had a care in the world and couldn’t be more relaxed. They were wild and free in their natural environment where they belong. It was such a pleasure to witness our close relatives going about their strikingly similar behavior of relaxing. After leaving the baboons in peace we came to the conclusion the most of us have lied down in one or more of the awkward but funny looking positions seen among the baboons. The only difference is that we usually will lie like that when no one is watching.