Keeping monkey business in check
As overpopulation and drought drive Sattahip’s macaques out of the jungle in search of food, authorities are fighting to maintain control By Jetjaras Na Ranong
It looked like a lucky break for the monkeys of Sattahip. After a long dry spell, a group of humans had seemingly come to their rescue by laying out a buffet of fruit inside a large metal cage.
But as more than 20 monkeys entered the cage, about four metres long and two metres high, to feast on rambutan, beans and jackfruit, the door suddenly slammed shut.
The trapped monkeys screamed and were visibly agitated.
Around 10 people quickly emerged from hiding and approached the cage. The females were immediately released, but the males were not so fortunate: they were transferred into small cages and taken to a nearby makeshift veterinary facility for castration.
The chaotic scene was part of a 10-day operation to control the monkey population in the coastal district of Chon Buri province. For years, the animals have been living in the lush jungle which surrounds the Sattahip Naval Base, and the population has thrived — it is estimated that more than 1,000 long-tailed macaques call the area home.
But this year, drought has taken its toll. The forest has dried out, and with it the fruit that sustains the large monkey population. The animals have been forced out of the jungle in search of food, leaving locals frustrated and fearful.
Some go to residential areas to steal food, particularly around the navy offices and housing facilities. A primary school inside the navy compound has proved a popular target, and the reaction of students has been mixed: some were amused to see the monkeys, but some were terrified.
Pairoj Malakul Na Ayutthaya, mayor of Khetudomsak sub-district, said the municipality office took the lead in controlling the monkey population after the Sattahip Naval Base and more than 1,621 residents living nearby had complained about the problem. The first operation of its kind, it is a joint effort between the Khetudomsak municipality, the national parks office and the naval base, which provides personnel to help catch the monkeys.
“We have to control the monkey population because the ratio of monkeys [to other wildlife] in the area is too high. It affects the ecological balance,” Mr Pairoj said. “The monkeys have to invade human residential areas to find food.
Some of them scare tourists. Some climb electrical wires, causing blackouts in the area. Moreover, monkeys can be a source of diseases such as rabies and smallpox.”
Long-tailed macaques, a medium-sized monkey with brown and white fur, are considered a protected species under wildlife preservation laws, although are a common sight in Thailand.
Catching the animals, however, is not easy. The municipality set a target to castrate more than 100 males between July 1 and 10. But officials said that progress had been slow because the monkeys are intelligent and able to learn the tactics of the team trying to catch them.
Spectrum joined the team on the sixth day of its operation. The mission started early in the morning with around 10 people travelling into the forest to construct the large metal cage.
After the officers finished building the structure, they spread out fruit as bait and took up hiding spots in the trees nearby.
It took less than five minutes for the first monkeys to appear. As more arrived, one of the team members waited patiently with his hands on a lever which, when pulled, would close the cage door and trap the monkeys inside.
When the number of animals reached about 20, the officer reacted and the gate snapped shut.
Macaques are sexually dimorphic, and the male monkeys are visibly larger than females. Of about 20 monkeys caught on this occasion, only two were male. The team shipped the males off for castration, and continued on to another location to lay a similar trap.
“After the other monkeys saw that some of their friends had been caught in the metal cage, it is difficult to lure the rest of them. We have to move to a new location to catch another group of monkeys,” said a navy officer who joined the operation.
The male monkeys were sent to be castrated at a nearby parking lot, where a temporary veterinary facility had been set up and a group of surgeons was waiting.
The monkeys were administered a sedative, then the scariest part of the operation began.
The surgeon made a small incision before removing each monkey’s testicles. A small black mark would be left on the monkey’s head to indicate the castration had been performed, and the animals were then left lying unconscious for several hours while the anaesthetic wore off.
After about six hours of recovery, the castrated monkeys were released into the forest at the location they were caught.
The fruits of the operation will take time to show. In the meantime, the municipality is looking at short-term measures to control the monkey population. At the top of its list is a plan to erect a fence separating the forest from residential areas. Whether a fence can contain more than 1,000 enterprising monkeys only time will tell.