Meet The Handsome Gorilla Who Is Driving Japanese Girls Crazy (Photos)

A gorilla who grew up in an Australian zoo and nicknamed Shabani has become a heartthrob among women in Japan.  The gorilla, who now lives in Higashiyama Zoo and Botanical Gardens in Nagoya, has attracted a large following of admirers who visit him because he is so handsome.

According to Zoo officials, there had been a notable increase in young female visitors thanks to Shabani who's rise to fame has been fuelled largely by Twitter, where fans post pictures of him claiming he is 'too handsome'. His adoring Twitter following often refers to him as an 'ikemen', which means a 'good-looking man'.

A senior zookeeper, Allan Schmidt said Shabani was moved to Australia from The Netherlands as a 2-month-old in December 1996 with his family. When asked if he was surprised by Shabani's popularity he said: 'No because the Japanese are crazy... The Japanese love their fads. I would say most people would consider him fairly dashing.