@manuelgarciadegracia monin🐒 en peligro que un 🐊 se lo coma🛶
As a boat operator transporting goods and cargo in his small vessel along Panama’s Bayano River, Matusalen Garcia knows the ins and outs of the region better than most.
But in all his years of working on the river, he’s never had an experience quite like the one he had the other day.
In the morning, as Garcia made his way to the first job of the day, he noticed a small, dark figure struggling in the river. It wasn’t clear at first exactly what the figure was.
“I headed towards it,” Garcia told The Dodo. “It turned out to be a howler monkey. Seeing her defenseless, at the mercy of the river and in danger of crocodiles, I made the decision to offer her help.”
And as footage from that moment shows, the monkey was more than eager to accept it:
This was the closest Garcia has ever come to a howler monkey — and chances are, it was a similarly novel encounter for her, as well. Yet, in a glance between the two, there seemed to be an understanding.
“When she looked at me, I knew she was grateful that I saved her,” Garcia said.
In the end, the monkey returned safely to shore, safe and sound after her perilous swim.
Garcia went about his business as usual afterwards, too, but with extra brightness in his heart:
“I felt very good to be able to help that poor animal,” he said.
