At 11am yesterday, a 28-year-old man surnamed Lee was surprised to find approximately 40-50 rhesus macaques on the playground next to the Church of Christ in China Kei Tsz Primary School. The monkeys looked like they were having a whale of a time, with some taking walks, sunbathing on the basketball court, and even using the children’s slide.
Lee told Apple Daily that he normally sees about five or six monkeys in the area, but explained that the food offerings left at graves for Chung Yeung Festival was probably responsible for attracting such a large group. A vet who spoke to Apple Daily agreed, saying that the monkeys’ growing population left them no other option than to scavenge for food.
Teachers at the school forbade the students from accessing the temporary jungle gym while staff from the Agricultural, Fisheries and Conservation Department tried to shoo the monkeys away.
Someone must have cracked a joke about the monkeys “occupying” the playground, as there were police officers on the scene as well, armed with batons and shields. After about an hour, one of the female macaques was lured into a trap with peanuts and her capture sent the others scuttling away.
The Agricultural, Fisheries and Conservation Department said that they will run some tests on the captured macaque and release her back into the wild if she is in good health.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
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