Punch the monkey who captured hearts has finally made some friends

Punch the baby monkey is already growing up in front of us - and there's been a new update.

The baby orphan macaque became beloved by the internet after people learned that he was abandoned by his mother seven months ago and has since been cared for by the zookeepers at the Ichikawa City Zoological and Botanical Gardens in Japan.

Whenever other monkeys shooed or fought with him, Punch would retreat back to the toy orangutan for comfort and plenty of hugs, and it was given to him by zookeepers nursed him in order for him to train to cling - an essential ability newborn macaques need to survive.

This photo taken on February 19, 2026 shows a seven month-old male macaque monkey named Punch, who was abandoned by his mother shortly after birth, sitting with a stuffed orangutan toy at Ichikawa City Zoo and Botanical Gardens in Chiba Prefecture. Photo by JIJI PRESS / AFP via Getty Images/Japan OUT

But in the new update it seems Punch has been less dependent on the plushie as he was spotted climbing on the back of another monkey, sitting with adults and sometimes getting groomed or hugged, as per Associated Press.

“It was good to see him grow, and I’m reassured,” said Sanae Izumi, a 61-year-old Punch fan from Osaka who came to the zoo because she was worried about the baby monkey. “He is adorable!”

“Helping Punch learn the rules of monkey society and being accepted as a member is our most important task,” said Kosuke Kano, a 24-year-old zookeeper.

Punch needing his toy orangutan less in a good sign of his development.

“When he grows out of the plush toy that encourages his independence, and that’s what we are hoping for,” zoo director Shigekazu Mizushina said.

The next step? Zoo keepers are keen to see Punch bunched up with other monkeys to sleep since at the moment he still sleeps with his toy orangtuan.

Since becoming a viral sensation everyone has been eagerly looking out for more clips of Punch to see how he's doing, with the latest including Punch learning how walk on two legs and how to wave.

But the newfound fame has also meant the zoo has had to implement new rules for visitors, asking them to be quiet and limit viewing to 10 minutes for stress reduction purposes.

Elsewhere from Indy100, Punch the monkey has just learned this adorable trick - and people can't cope, and Where to buy Punch the monkey's stuffed orangutan toy companion.

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