The sanctuary’s largest enclosure – 56 acres in all – is home to 193 free-ranging Japanese macaques (and one long-tailed macaque called Reggie). Feeding time is, as you can probably imagine, a sight to behold for us and, perhaps somewhat surprisingly is, for the monkeys themselves, an intensely social and political activity.
A little like a traditional formal dinner for humans, there is a lot of etiquette to consider when monkeys eat. Not the kind of etiquette about which fork to use for your salad or which glasses to use for wine or water, of course, but etiquette relating to who gets to eat first and who needs to wait their turn, who might steal your prized banana right out of your hands if you are not quick enough and, importantly, where the best seat in the house is if you want to get the really good stuff. From the outside, it may look like chaos but don’t be fooled. There is a complex system of social hierarchy and interaction which is at play at all times; and particularly at feeding time.
As a general rule, if you are an adult male in good health, and have a high social ranking, you can rest assured that you will get rich pickings. Simply position yourself within fruit throwing distance of the food truck and you will have your breakfast served to you. An off throw by one of our team can occasionally mean that you have to dodge the odd sweet potato or tomato raining down from above but, generally, you will eat well without having to expend too much thought or energy.
If, on the other hand, you are a younger monkey still finding their place in the hierarchy, or a lower-ranking monkey (particularly if you are female), or a little under the weather, or smaller than the others, or elderly without having achieved a high social status, dinner time can be something of a battle of wits.
Take Kate, for example. Kate is a healthy adult female who has worked out a great way to ensure that she doesn’t miss out on the very best fruit. She positions herself in the line of sight of the caretaker throwing out the food and waits, arms outstretched. The fruit flies towards her and she doesn’t flinch; she knows she’s “got this.” In the blink of an eye, Kate grabs the banana, avocado, or mango as it sails through the air and then sets off running as fast as she can to a quiet place to devour it. If monkeys had football teams, Kate would make a great wide receiver.
Boyd is a bit of a social outcast. After a period of ill health, he lost weight and, along with it, his confidence in eating in the big social group. Showing weakness can often be a signal to other monkeys to take advantage and so Boyd has to be extra careful when he is eating, to make sure his food doesn’t get taken away. But, Boyd also knows that our team has his back. At a particular turn in the road within the enclosure, out of sight of the most popular feeding spots, each of our team members knows where to look to see Boyd peeking out of his hiding place as he waits for his food delivery. Quick as we can, we throw Boyd his special breakfast items, which he grabs and takes away to eat in peace.
Fun-Fur is an elderly female who is distinctive because she is missing one eye. Like Boyd, she knows that her low ranking status doesn’t mean that our team will allow her to miss out. And Fun-Fur knows that, where there are humans, there is food. So, it is a common sight in the truck’s rear-view mirror to see little Fun-Fur running behind. Either that, or you will see her standing in the middle of the road to make you stop, like a small furry traffic cop. She knows that we will stop and she knows that we have her special items on the passenger seat, ready to be given to her. She also knows that she needs to keep out of sight of the big adult males who haven’t quite figured out her tricks just yet. So, just as quickly as she appears, she disappears off into the thick undergrowth to enjoy the spoils of her labor.
Watch Kate, Boyd, and Fun-Fur’s clever mealtime tactics:
You might wonder if we train the monkeys to do these things but the comical truth is that it is the other way round. There was never a discussion within the team about stopping at that particular corner to seek out Boyd, but Boyd simply started showing up and trained us to stop and feed him. Fun-Fur tries her truck-tailing skills with new members of staff and soon they are under her spell. Kate’s catching is all down to her knowing that a secure grip on the best food and a quick getaway is the best way to get – and keep – what you want.
These are just a few of the incredible characters our team gets to work with each day and each of them remind us daily that they, and the other 530 monkey residents here, are individuals with their own likes, dislikes and ideas.
For the monkeys,
Liz
With 531 monkeys, our Primate Sanctuary goes through a lot of food. Each day, the monkeys consume 500 pounds of produce and our total annual food costs are at $140,000! You can help cover this important expense by donating to our Feed a Monkey campaign! For only $5, you can provide a monkey with an entire week of nutritious and delicious food.
The monkeys need your support. Feed a monkey today!
