King of the Swimmers
THESE amazing pictures show the moment an orangutan swims underwater.
Suryia, seven, loves taking a dip with his trainer Moksha Bybee, even appearing to wave below the surface.
He happily clings to her back as she dives into the pool, defying the perception great apes don't like water.This extraordinary orangutan only took three weeks to learn how to swim.
Now he is always gliding around his 10ft pool at Myrtle Beach Safari park, South Carolina, USA.
He will even stand under the water as long as he is holding 30-year-old Moksha's hand.
She says: "Suryia's learning curve has been incredible.
"His favourite thing is to dive into the water on my back. When I surface he pulls at me almost to say 'Again, again!'."
Orangutans - whose natural habitat is in the forests of Indonesia and Malaysia on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra - are not afraid to splash about in the wild.
However, it is highly unusual for this endangered, tree- dwelling animal to swim fully submerged.
But it seems swimming fan Suryia couldn't give a monkey's about getting wet.
