Monkey Trouble

One day, I was sitting in a park in Cape Town, South Africa, when someone—or something—grabbed my backpack. To my surprise, it was a small baboon! I laughed at the little monkey’s attempted thievery. . . until I saw a group of its bigger, meaner-looking friends coming toward me. Suddenly, the situation wasn’t so funny.

“Leave your bag, back away slowly, and don’t make eye contact,” a friend I was with told me. After I carefully followed his instructions, the little monkey snatched my backpack and disappeared with its friends. I had just been robbed—by a baboon.

Before I moved to Cape Town, nobody warned me about the baboons. I had to learn the hard way that these monkeys will steal from people in broad daylight, break into cars, and ransack homes—all in search of food. Scientists are studying the baboons’ troublesome behavior and working to control these animals so that no one—human or monkey—gets hurt.

One day, I was sitting in a park in Cape Town, South Africa. Someone—or something—grabbed my backpack. To my surprise, it was a small baboon! I laughed at the little monkey’s attempt at stealing. But then I saw a group of its bigger, meaner-looking friends coming toward me. Suddenly, it wasn’t so funny.

“Leave your bag, back away slowly, and don’t make eye contact,” said a friend who was with me. I followed his directions. The little monkey snatched my backpack and disappeared with its friends. I had just been robbed—by a baboon.

Before I moved to Cape Town, nobody warned me about the baboons. I had to learn the hard way. These monkeys will steal from people in broad daylight, break into cars, and raid homes. They do it all in search of food. Scientists are studying the baboons’ problem behavior. They’re also working to control these animals so that no one—human or monkey—gets hurt.

Baboons are primates, an order of animals that includes humans, apes, and monkeys (see A Lot Like Us). Primates are known for their intelligence. But baboons have more than just smarts. They’re strong and have hands like those of humans, allowing them to grasp and manipulate objects. That unusual combination of traits makes baboons excellent thieves.

Baboons are relatively common throughout Africa. But they are usually too afraid of humans to give people much trouble. Cape Town’s baboons are different. They have become habituated to the presence of humans. And that has made them fearless.

Baboons are primates. This order of animals includes humans, apes, and monkeys (see A Lot Like Us). Primates are known for their intelligence. But baboons have more than just smarts. They’re strong and have hands like those of humans. This allows them to grasp objects easily. That combination of features makes baboons excellent thieves.

Baboons are rather common throughout Africa. But they usually don’t give people much trouble. That’s because they’re too afraid of humans. Cape Town’s baboons are different. They have become habituated to—or used to—being around humans. And that has made them fearless.

Baboons in Cape Town have been known to scale apartment buildings, jump over walls, and unlock windows and doors. Several years ago, it wasn’t uncommon to find a baboon in your kitchen. These monkeys rarely injure people, but a few serious attacks have been reported.

“I don’t think there was any more challenging example of human-wildlife conflict in the world,” says Justin O’Riain, the director of the Institute for Communities and Wildlife in Africa at the University of Cape Town.

Baboons in Cape Town have climbed apartment buildings and jumped over walls. They’ve unlocked windows and doors. Several years ago, it wasn’t uncommon to find a baboon in yourkitchen. These monkeys rarely hurt people, but a few serious attacks have been reported.

“I don’t think there was any more challenging example of human-wildlife conflict in the world,” says Justin O’Riain. He’s the director of the Institute for Communities and Wildlife at the University of Cape Town.

In 2010, Cape Town officials asked O’Riain and his team to gather data about the local baboon populations. They hoped to use the information to figure out how to rein in Cape Town’s out-of-control monkeys. After months of work, O’Riain and his team found about 300 baboons organized into 11 social groups, called troops, living on the outskirts of the city.

The scientists learned that raids by baboons were a serious problem for people. But they also discovered that raids were bad for the monkeys too. Raiding monkeys were more likely to develop rotting teeth and become ill. People were also killing the animals in revenge.

Armed with O’Riain’s research, the city of Cape Town initiated a program that aimed to control—and help—the baboon population. The city launched a massive education campaign that taught people baboon-proofing methods for their homes and warned locals not to feed the monkeys. It hired teams to track the baboons and scare them off using nonlethal methods—a technique called hazing. The city also instituted a more controversial program to selectively cull, or kill, the worst-offending baboons.

In 2010, Cape Town officials asked O’Riain and his team for help. The officials wanted information about the local baboon populations. They hoped to use it to figure out how to control Cape Town’s problem monkeys. After months of work, O’Riain and his team found about 300 baboons living on the edges of the city. The monkeys formed 11 social groups, called troops.

The scientists learned that raids by baboons were a big problem for people. But they found that raids were bad for the monkeys too. Raiding monkeys were more likely to develop rotting teeth and become ill. People were also killing the animals in revenge.

O’Riain showed his research to Cape Town officials. The city started a program that aimed to control—and help—the baboons. Part of it was a huge education campaign. It taught people ways to baboon-proof their homes and warned them not to feed the monkeys. The city hired teams to track the baboons and scare them off with methods that aren’t deadly. This is called hazing. The city also started a program that not everyone agreed with. It involved culling, or killing, the baboons that caused the worst problems.

Hazing involves the use of paintball guns and noisemakers, which are approved by a local chapter of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and have been used elsewhere. But not everyone agrees it’s a good idea.

Kathy Kelly, a member of the animal rights group Baboon Matters in Cape Town, believes hazing is too harsh. “It also sends the wrong message to residents,” she says. “They think it’s OK to haul out their paintball guns and shoot.” Baboon Matters also says the culling program destabilizes baboon troops. It argues that killing off dominant monkeys within a group disrupts that troop’s social structure, leading to stress.

Hazing involves the use of paintball guns and noisemakers. These are approved by a local chapter of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. They’ve been used in other places. But not everyone agrees it’s a good idea.

Kathy Kelly is a member of the animal rights group Baboon Matters in Cape Town. She believes hazing is too harsh. “It also sends the wrong message to residents,” she says. “They think it’s OK to haul out their paintball guns and shoot.” Baboon Matters also says the culling program hurts baboon troops. It argues that killing off a group’s leading monkeys upsets that troop’s social structure. This leads to stress.

O’Riain and city officials say the program has been a success. Raids by problem monkeys are at an all-time low even though the baboon population in Cape Town has risen to more than 500. And scientists have recently installed high-tech collars to better track the monkeys’ movements and learn more about their habits.”

O’Riain and city officials say the program has been a success. The baboon population in Cape Town has grown to more than 500. But raids by problem monkeys are at an all-time low. And now scientists have started using high-tech collars. This will help them track the monkeys’ movements and learn more about their habits.

The baboons of Cape Town may be nuisances, but they were there long before people. They also have nowhere else to go. That’s because the monkeys’ traditional migration routes have been cut off by sprawling urban growth. The baboons have few options but to try to survive.

The baboons of Cape Town may cause trouble, but they were there long before people. They also have nowhere else to go. The monkeys once used migration routes. But these routes have been cut off by the spreading city. The baboons have few choices but to try to survive.  

City officials currently have the baboon population under control, but Cape Town keeps expanding. If the baboons’ numbers continue to grow—or their territory continues to shrink—there’s a chance they will increase their raiding. “Space is finite,” says O’Riain. “Down the line, there will be two options: culling or fertility control.” Fertility control would involve capturing some monkeys and making them temporarily unable to reproduce.

Whatever happens, Kelly and her colleagues at Baboon Matters hope the people of Cape Town can learn to live with the monkeys—raids and all. “Cape Townians love their baboons,” says Kelly. “We can’t just let our need for expansion wipe them out.”

Right now, city officials have the baboon population under control. But Cape Town keeps growing. If the baboons’ numbers continue to rise, the animals could increase their raiding. The same could happen if their territory continues to shrink. “Space is finite,” says O’Riain. “Down the line, there will be two options: culling or fertility control.” Fertility control would mean catching some monkeys and making them unable to reproduce for a time.

Whatever happens, Kelly and other members of Baboon Matters aren’t giving up. They hope the people of Cape Town can learn to live with its monkeys—raids and all. “Cape Townians love their baboons,” says Kelly. “We can’t just let our need for expansion wipe them out.”