
Langur monkeys were reported by villagers in Lavool village, located in Maharastra’s Beed district, who saw them dragging puppies to inaccessible heights and starving them there.
One resident told the PTI news agency: “These two monkeys come to our village. They take puppies with them on the roofs of houses or to any other high place.
“At such a height, these puppies are not given food or water. Therefore, they died naturally many times. But sometimes they fell and died.
Some locals believe it was an act of ‘revenge’ after dogs killed baby monkey — although forester Amol Munde told Zee News there was no report of dogs killing a baby monkey, and it was just a rumor started by the locals.
He also took issue with the number of puppies that are said to have died, saying he was only aware of three or four puppies that were killed in this manner.
Sachin Kand, another forestry officer, confirmed that the two monkeys have now been captured.
“The two monkeys are transferred to Nagpur to be released in a nearby forest.”
Speaking to Vice, experts explained that manifestations of aggression in primates — especially in their relationships with humans — can be linked to a number of factors, including unintentional or voluntary feeding in premises of near dwelling.
Mewa Singh, professor of ecology at the University of Mysore, told the outlet, “In the world and the ape perception system, someone offering food is the most submissive form of subordination. Apes are starting to see humans as their subordinates.
“The next time they see a person with food and the person does not offer food to the monkeys, they are likely to be frustrated as if it is their right to receive that food. They are now susceptible to attack.
Sumanth Bindumadhav, Senior Director of Wildlife Disaster Response for Humane Society International India, also suggested that although ‘vengeful’ behavior of primates has already been reported in the media, we should proceed with caution before labeling animals of this way without conclusive evidence.
“We often tend to associate ‘human’ feelings with any animal. We call it “revenge,” or call them “angry” or “aggressive” without really understanding the depth or ramifications of the association of anthropomorphic traits with animals, ”Bindumadhav told Vice.
He added: “What is unfair is that without further investigation of the matter, authorities have gone ahead and started capturing the primates involved, which is a welfare issue and not only aggravate conflicts with primates. ”
Leave a Reply