Darting animals in a zoo is never easy, and monkeys present a stiff challenge.
Recently, the zoo staff set out to dart three bonnet macaques that entered the premises from outside. Though two monkeys made good their escape, one male was darted. In the time taken for the medicine to kick in, it headed across to the large lake on the premises and climbing the trees on the banks, reached the island in the middle. There, it went up a couple of bamboo trees, nodded off, and fell a distance on to a bed of leaves.
To retrieve the animal, the zoo staff had to swim across to the island with a plastic container, put the drowsy monkey inside and bring the animal back. This bonnet macaque was lucky, but when monkeys scamper up trees in the five to 10 minutes it takes for the medicines to kick in, the zoo staff go through anxious moments.
A few days ago, the zoo staff tried to lure a lion-tailed macaque in the open enclosure to the animal house with food so that they could take a look at its injured hand, but in vain. The monkey did not touch the food during daytime. When this went on for two days, the zoo staff stepped in to dart it. But their work was not over. They had to keep a close eye on it for had it disappeared among the trees, they would have had to wait below with net in hand to catch it if it fell, putting them at considerable risk of being attacked by the other monkeys.
In another incident a few months ago, a monkey that had hernia was darted. The animal climbed up a tree near the Natural History Museum and started napping. To bring it down, the Fire and Rescue Services were called in. Hearing the commotion below, the monkey woke up, and jumped on to the nearby trees. Finally, it was left to one of those bringing supplies to the zoo to bring the animal down.
The zoo has no bonnet macaques, and there is the threat of the ones straying in spreading diseases. Their presence triggers missions to dart them. A month ago, when a bonnet macaque wandered in, attempts were made to scare it away, but it kept coming back. Soon enough, it was up to its tricks, throwing things around, leaving no option but for it to be darted.
