by Grania

Jerry asked me to post this video after we both had come across it via different sources. I remember my own animals’ reactions to the mirror – we had a large one on the floor propped up against a wall once upon a time, and on various occasions a resident felid or canid would pass by and notice themselves. The cats didn’t seem to be interested or impressed (are they ever?). One of our wolf-descendants tried to threaten the mirror in all earnestness and required a fair amount of tender aftercare to reassure him that the monster in mirror was gone. Another spent a great deal of time investigating behind the mirror (smart girl) and worrying why she couldn’t find anyone there. Our four-footed cousins are a lot like us.

2DayFM Australia has some background:

Innovative French photographer Xavier Hubert Brierre travelled to Gabon with his wife and set up a mirror in several locations in order to capture animals walking by.

The results are stunning, with one of the more amusing reactions being from two leopards.

One of them takes several looks at the mirror before it is attacked by a second leopard, who calls off the ambush when he too spots Xavier’s mirror.