Born Free USA is appalled to hear about plans to kill free-living vervet monkeys on the Caribbean territory of Sint Maarten and is working with partners to encourage the Sint Maarten Government to ensure that non-lethal sterilization methods are implemented in place of the proposed cull. Plans announced in international press yesterday stated that the Government of Sint Maarten are planning to rid the territory of non-native vervet monkeys, thought to be present on the island due to trade in the species as pets in past decades, or even centuries. The plans came following an assessment carried out by a local Sint Maarten NGO, Nature Foundation, which highlighted concerns over growing populations of the monkeys, and recommended a cull as a solution. It is unknown whether the government has consulted with third parties with expertise in humane primate population management. This is particularly important as the lead author of the culling recommendations is a marine biologist with no apparent experience working with primates.
Said Angela Grimes, Born Free CEO: “We are deeply concerned to learn of the plans to kill 450 vervet monkeys on the territory of Sint Maarten in the Caribbean. While we recognize that the monkeys are non-native species, they are present on the island through no fault of their own. We, and partners concerned for the welfare of the monkeys, are calling upon the Sint Maarten government to reconsider their plans and work with us to explore compassionate, humane, non-lethal options, which will mitigate the issues of human-wildlife conflict while protecting the precious lives of the individual monkeys.”
Experts, including a spokesperson from the Vervet Monkey Foundation in South Africa, have made calls to adopt a long-term sterilization program while implementing mitigation measures to limit human-wildlife conflict in the short term, using tried and tested methods. The Nature Foundation proposal includes information suggesting the cost to government for the cull would be around $55,000 USD per year. Animal welfare advocates are calling for those funds to be reallocated to implement non-lethal control programs.
Grimes continued: “We will be reaching out to the Sint Maarten government, and the neighboring French territory of Saint Martin, in the coming days to request urgent dialogue on this issue. Global experts in this field are standing by to support the Government in making well-informed and humane choices over the future of the monkeys.”
Vervet monkeys are medium sized monkeys native to the African continent. They have long tails, dappled grey fur, and distinctive ring of white fur framing their faces. They are complex, social animals who form strong family and friendship bonds which last a lifetime. They live in groups of 10 – 50 individuals in strict hierarchies where each individual monkey understands their place and adheres to social and behavioral norms. Vervets have long childhoods, with females remaining within their matriarchal group for their lifetime and males dispersing only when they reach adolescence. Vervets are thought to possess the rudiments of language, that is, vocal communication through an intricate system of alarm calls that vary greatly depending on the different types of threats to the community. For example, there are distinct predator-specific calls to warn of invading leopards, snakes and eagles.
Born Free USA cares for ten vervet monkeys rescued from the U.S. pet trade at its sanctuary in south Texas.
