{"id":29973,"date":"2024-05-24T07:00:05","date_gmt":"2024-05-24T11:00:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/thai-town-maddened-by-marauding-monkeys-launches-plan-to-lock-them-up-and-send-them-away\/24\/05\/2024\/"},"modified":"2024-05-24T07:49:51","modified_gmt":"2024-05-24T11:49:51","slug":"thai-town-maddened-by-marauding-monkeys-launches-plan-to-lock-them-up-and-send-them-away","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/thai-town-maddened-by-marauding-monkeys-launches-plan-to-lock-them-up-and-send-them-away\/24\/05\/2024\/","title":{"rendered":"Thai town maddened by marauding monkeys launches plan to lock them up and send them away"},"content":{"rendered":"

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LOPBURI, Thailand (AP) \u2014 A Thai town, run ragged by its ever-growing population of marauding wild monkeys, launched an offensive against the simian raiders on Friday, using trickery and ripe tropical fruit.<\/p>\n

Several high-profile cases of monkey-human conflict recently convinced authorities in Lopburi in central Thailand that they had to reduce the animals’ numbers.<\/p>\n

If all goes well, most will end up behind bars, before starting a new life elsewhere.<\/p>\n

The first stage of the plan<\/a>, instituted Friday, is to bait cages with the animals\u2019 favorite food, then wait for hunger to get the better of their natural caution.<\/p>\n

There was early success for the catchers on one street, with three of the macaques falling for the ruse and ending up trapped because they had fancied a taste of rambutan fruit. The cages had been placed on the street earlier in the week so the monkeys got used to them and found them less threatening.<\/p>\n

There are thought to be around 2,500 monkeys running around the town. The capture of the unlucky trio and around 30 others -\u2013 trapped in other parts of the town — slightly pared down that total.<\/p>\n

The effort will go on for five days this month, then is likely to be repeated. Some of the monkeys will be left free to maintain Lopburi\u2019s image as Thailand\u2019s monkey town.<\/a><\/p>\n

But no one is expecting it to be easy.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith the monkey\u2019s intelligence, if some of them go into the cage and are caught, the others outside won\u2019t enter the cage to get the food because they\u2019ve already learnt what\u2019s happened to their friends,\u201d said Patarapol Maneeorn from Thailand\u2019s Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation.<\/p>\n

The roaming monkeys have long been a symbol of the town, 140 kilometers (90 miles) north of Bangkok, and are a major tourist draw. They’ve become increasingly aggressive, however, with several videos of them snatching food from residents and causing injuries being widely shared online.<\/p>\n

One auto parts shop now trades from behind wire. The owners erected it at the time of the coronavirus pandemic, but keeping out the light-fingered primates was also a prime concern. They say they\u2019ve adapted to the monkey problem, but not everyone has.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen there are a lot of monkeys around, customers are afraid of buying the goods at the shop. Only our regulars aren\u2019t frightened,\u201d said Supaporn Tantiwong.<\/p>\n

The town\u2019s mayor, Chamroen Salacheep, agrees that the monkeys, while bringing in visitors, have also become bad for trade, with shops and malls seeing a drop in income and even people\u2019s homes damaged. Lopburi, he said, is almost an \u201cabandoned town.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter our operation is over,\u201d Chamroen said, \u201cI will do a big cleaning across the town and paint all the buildings to regain the faith of the people.\u201d<\/p>\n

These may seem like grim times for monkeys in Lopburi, but there is a plan to give them a fresh start.<\/p>\n

On Friday authorities began sedating them to carry out health checks before cleaning and sterilizing them and inking them with tattoos so they can be identified to keep accurate records.<\/p>\n

After that they\u2019ll transfer them to a series of huge holding pens, just outside the town center, while looking for a permanent home.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

LOPBURI, Thailand (AP) — A Thai town, run ragged by its ever-growing population of marauding wild monkeys, launched an offensive against the