Conflicts between baboons and humans in the suburbs of prosperous Cape Town have gotten so bad that monitoring teams have been deployed to keep the animals away.
Urban development has cut off a troop of 350 baboons from territory where they used to roam free and forage for food – so instead, they now hunt for food in the trash cans and kitchens of the humans who have taken over their former neighborhood. Some days, areas in the Cape peninsula look like they had been the scene of a massive food fight, with overturned trash cans and shredded garbage bags galore.
The large monkeys invade people’s homes, sometimes confronting people who try to scare the baboons off.
Some residents have retaliated by shooting and poisoning baboons and by running them over on local roads.
The situation has also caused rifts within communities. In a suburb ironically named Welcome Glen, rival societies have formed, with some trying to protect the baboons and others wanting them removed or killed.
Joan Laing is co-chair of a rival Welcome Glen Baboon-Free Neighbourhood Action Group. She says the animals are a menace.
“They break windows to get into houses,” Laing said. “They even know how to open doors. And once inside, they make a mess. They empty the fridge, ruin furniture, and defecate all over.”
And they’re not afraid of people, she says.
“I have had them in my house several times, even while I was there. They simply brushed past me. I had to get out of the way,” Laing said. “Even my husband got threatened by a baboon.”
Source: National Geographic Link Posted by Drew. Filed under Weird World News
