Community Chat

[Bird mama]

This entire monkey attack is really peculiar.  It seems odd to me that after relative peace in the city a mob of monkeys came down from wherever they live, woods/forests and attacked 58 people (according to one report).  I read that they euthanized one of the monkeys that was part of the mob and I hope they do a post mortem on the poor thing.

Ecological changes appear in nature first and I hope the folks in Japan are paying attention.  Maybe this mob of monkeys got sick or something which prompted the aggressive behavior.  Personally I would want to know if there was a health issue behind it.  I'm writing this thinking about the other monkeys of the species however determining if there is a health issue could also benefit man as a species.

[Venezia]

During the height of the pandemic, when people were ordered to stay indoors and normally busy streets were deserted, there were reports of animals moving back into those areas and running wild.

It was covered on the national news and scientists were explaining it as natural regression (or words to that effect).  The animals would move back in, when the areas were empty of people and traffic.

I suspect it will take a while before the animals completely vacate their new "habitat".  That's assuming they do!

[PickyPicky3]

@Bird mama   Yes, it is peculiar. That's why I posted it. It's not about food, protection of offspring, reclamation of habitat, or any of the usual understandable explanations. When I read it I immediately thought about rabies. Then Alfred Hitchcock's movie The Birds. I hope there are updates.

[SilleeMee]

Japanese macaques have been protected there since the war. Their numbers have increased and that can lead to possible over-crowding and subsequent aggression. Males could be run out of a troop and forced to roam into urban areas. Then others will follow and like the saying goes...monkey see, monkey do.

[Trailrun23]

My son travels for business, and when he went to India for the first time,  he was freaked out by a huge monkey climbing all over the cab he was in, and climbing in through the open window and going out the other one. The driver seemed oblivious like it happened all the time. He said monkeys were everywhere. Sharp teeth and aggressive. They aren't out because people have fed them, apparently that specific breed just has the run of the place there. 
Black bears breaking into cars and cabins is the fault of idiot tourists who think it's cute to offer bears candy or other food...so the bears lose their fear of people. Despite signs everywhere warning about feeding bears, people also fail to lock up trash and store food inside tight fitting containers so bears can't smell it. Their sense of smell is incredible. They can smell a pac of tic-tacs left in the car console and can rip the car door off to get them! ( true story). Once the bears get into trouble for breaking into cars or harrassing humans for food, they are deemed nuisance bears and are put down. I hate that! I love the black bears!