Shy primates grow sociable along Agumbe Ghat

Easy availability of food may be changing their nature, say experts

Coming out of their shell: According to experts, easy availability of food may be changing the nature of lion-tailed macaques. Photo: Anil Kumar Sastry

Lion-tailed macaques, counted among the endangered spices of primates in the country, are known to be shy by nature. But a few among them appear to be becoming more sociable. They can often be spotted coming close to humans in the Agumbe Ghat region in Karnataka, even seeking food from travellers.

Lion-tailed macaques normally spend most part of their life on tree canopies. They run away on sensing the presence of human beings, said Arunachala Hebbar, a nature photographer based in Udupi. Mr. Hebbar said he spent days to click the macaques but in vein.

However, when this reporter was ascending the Agumbe Ghat last week from Someshwara, several of them could be spotted on the retaining walls of the ghat, including a feeding mother. Some came close in anticipation of food when the car was stopped. This has been the experience of several travellers in this region.

Easy food

Mr. Hebbar said he had been seeing one lion-tailed macaque, along with commonly seen bonnet macaques, near the sunset point of the ghat where tourists have been feeding the primates since a couple of years. That particular macaque may have brought its flock later, he said.

His reasoning was substantiated by Deputy Conservator of Forests (Wildlife), Kudremukh Wildlife Division, Maria Christu Raja. There is a pack of about 10 individual monkeys in Agumbe Ghat, which has adapted to the new lifestyle, he told

The Hindu . He said there could be around 200 individuals in the Kudremukh region.

Eminent conservation zoologist Ullas Karanth told this correspondent that unlike some other regions in the Western Ghats, lion-tailed macaques are not hunted by humans in Agumbe and Kollur regions. This along with easy availability of food must have brought them to the ground from the canopies, he said.

Mr. Karanth refuted suggestions that there had been shortage of food in the wild owing to severe drought.

Gesture unwelcome

He said the gesture of feeding these primates was unwelcome. “It not only destroys their natural food habits, but also puts their life under risk as they may be run over by speeding vehicles,” he said. Incidentally, Agumbe Ghat has been witnessing heavy movement of vehicles for a couple of years.