One monkey is on an independent tour of the Scottish Highlands.
A Japanese macaque monkey escaped into the Scottish Highlands after escaping from its enclosure at the Highland Wildlife Park in Kingussie, Scotland on Sunday, the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (ZSO) reported.
Highland Wildlife Park officials have been searching for the monkey since it escaped and have asked for help from residents as well as the use of thermal drones to help locate the monkey.
The people of Kingussie and Kincraig, Scotland, cheekily named the monkey “Kingussie Kong,” he reports The New York Times. The missing monkey is a Japanese macaque, commonly called a snow monkey, native to Japan.
“A macaque was seen this morning, which we are currently responding to,” Keith Gilchrist, Highland Wildlife Park’s head of live animal collection operations, said in a statement on Tuesday.
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“During the day, our expert team of animal wardens will be patrolling the local area using various techniques to try and coax him out, as well as using our thermal imaging drone supplier to assist in the search,” continued Gilchrist. “Cairngorms Mountain Rescue have also kindly offered support with their thermal imaging drone.”
The macaque is “not considered dangerous to humans or pets”, but Highland Wildlife Park still advises people not to approach the animal.
“Kingussie Kong” is part of a monkey group of 36 other monkeys at the zoo, BBC Scotland News reports.
“It’s a very dynamic group of animals with quite a strong hierarchy,” Gilchrist told the BBC.
“This time of year is breeding season, so tensions run a little higher, and sometimes fights break out over breeding rights,” Gilchrist continued. “When that happens, the adrenaline of the animals can sometimes get the better of them, and instead of going into the fray to fight, it looks like this one just tried and went past the fence.”
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Japanese macaques at the Highland Wildlife Park in Scotland.
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Kincraig resident Carl Nagle told BBC Scotland News he saw the monkey outside his window on Sunday.
“I looked out the window and there he was, proud as punch, standing by the fence eating nuts that had fallen off one of the bird feeders,” Nagle said.
“He wandered around the garden for a bit – we thought he’d gone but he came back and then he was up on the bird feeders trying to get into them. He was doing really well – he was working harder than a squirrel.”
“For the last few days, this village has been going on a daily epic monkey hunt,” Nagle said The New York Times. “You’d think we were hunting an international fugitive instead of an innocent monkey.”
“It looked at me; I looked at him,” Nagle continued. “He knew he wasn’t where he needed to be.”
Nagle called animal wardens after seeing the monkey, but it had gone back in the direction of the trees by the time they arrived, Nagle said times. While “Kingussie Kong” was spotted again on Tuesday, the animal has yet to be rescued and returned to the Highland Wildlife Park.
“Everybody’s rooting for this monkey,” he said times. “He needs to have a ball and live his best life.”
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Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education