A Moment Of Baboon Lunch Theft Zen...

On Tuesday, a troupe of 29 baboons raided four cars outside Simon's Town, a small coastal neighborhood. A baboon dubbed "Fred," the leader of the group, opened unlocked doors and jumped through windows to search for food.

He ransacked a bag in the back seat of a red car as a couple panicked about their passports. A girl screamed nearby as a baboon hopped into her car through a back window. Others climbed on car roofs and hoods, looking for ways inside.


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Study Shows Opposites 'Really Do Attract'

When it comes to choosing a partner, monkeys pick a mate with genes dissimilar to their own, according to a new study.

That choice helps them to have healthy babies with strong immune systems, anthropologists say.

And they believe that the animals select mates with a different genetic make-up by using their acute sense of smell.

The findings add support to the controversial theory that people are also drawn to partners with different genes to their own.

Scientists often study mandrills, the world’s largest monkey, because of the animals’ similarity to humans.

The latest study, by anthropologists from the University of Durham, found that female mandrills were more likely to choose mates whose genes were complementary to theirs.

The team followed around 200 mandrills living in the tropical rainforest in Gabon in central Africa.

They believe that the monkeys picked genetically dissimilar mates through smelling their bodies, the aroma of which is partly determined through genes.

Dr Jo Setchell, who led the study, which is published in the Journal of Evolutionary Biology, said: "Mandrills are quite closely related to humans – we're both anthropoid primates – so our results support the idea that humans might choose genetically compatible mates.


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Congo's 'Mother Lode' Of Gorillas Remains Vulnerable

A new study by the Wildlife Conservation Society says that western lowland gorillas living in a large swamp in the Republic of Congo -- part of the "mother lode" of more than 125,000 gorillas discovered last year -- are becoming increasingly threatened by growing humans activity in the region.

The study recommends protection of the swamp forests adjacent to the southwest border of Lac Télé Community Reserve after recent surveys confirmed that high densities of the great apes still exist in the remote location.

The findings and recommendations appear in the November issue of the journal Oryx. The study's authors include: Hugo Rainey, Emma Stokes, Fiona Maisels, Samantha Strindberg, Fortuné Iyenguet, Guy-Aimé Malanda, and Bola Madzoké from the Wildlife Conservation Society: and Domingos Dos Santos from the Republic of Congo Minstère de l'Economie Forestière.

The swamp also supports large numbers of chimpanzees, red colobus monkeys, elephants, and other rain forest species. According to the study, imminent threats to the swamp include new logging operations, oil exploration, an influx of refugees from neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo, and, resulting from these developments, an increase in the human population, construction of roads and other infrastructure, and the escalation of the illegal bushmeat trade.

"We implore both the Government of the Republic of Congo and the international community to begin the groundwork for the creation of a new protected area to safeguard these gorillas and their unique environment for the benefit of future generations," said Dr. James Deutsch, WCS Director for Africa Programs. "Losing gorillas in this region after all the attention from their discovery would be a sad coda on an otherwise great story."


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Pet Monkey Attacks Toddler

An Indiana toddler is recovering after being attacked by her uncle's monkey, according to the Northwest Indiana Times.

The monkey, Sammy, which belongs to Richard and Laura Burlos of LaPorte, reached out of its cage and grabbed the hood of 10-month-old Brenna Nystrom, who was being held by her grandmother.

Then Sammy let go of her hood and started pulling her hair.

While the rest of the family panicked, Laura Berlos reached into Sammy’s cage, grabbed the monkey and forced it to let little Brenna go.

The Berlos are allowed to own the monkey because Indiana is one of the few states that doesn’t require a special permit for the animals. Local animal control is aware of the animal and have visited the Berlos’ home numerous times.


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Toronto Zoo Gorilla Picks Son's Name By Choosing Fruit

Charles the gorilla eyed a bank of cameras for a minute Wednesday morning before languidly reaching for a piece of fruit, unwittingly selecting his 2 1/2-month-old son's name.

Nassir, that's his baby.

The Toronto Zoo decided to give the proud papa a hand in choosing the name of their newest western lowland gorilla, born Sept. 2.

More than 5,000 name suggestions were submitted by members of the public. The only stipulation was the names had to start with the letter N, to honour the baby's mother Ngozi.

Zoo staff and a group of children whittled the mass of names down to the top 10, which were then voted on online. The five most popular were displayed Wednesday in the gorilla habitat, with a pile of fruit beneath each.

As he entered the habitat Charles circled the perimeter once, then took a seat next to the Nassir sign. He stared at the gathered members of the public and media, apparently weighing his options for a little while, before eating some fruit.


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Madagascar's Lemurs In Danger From 'Timber Mafia'

The lemur, a furry primate that symbolises Madagascar's unique biodiversity, is under renewed threat from a ''timber mafia'' pillaging the island's forests for profit.

Environmentalists warn that a political crisis in the impoverished country is reversing conservation gains of recent years and putting hundreds if not thousands of species, many not yet identified, at risk of extinction.

Madagascar, which has been isolated from land masses for more than 160 million years, is the world's fourth largest island and a ''conservation hot spot'', with thousands of exotic species found only here. These include nearly 100 species of lemur, six of which are deemed critically endangered.

Decades of logging, mining and slash-and-burn farming have destroyed 90 per cent of Madagascar's forests, though the rate has slowed down in the past two decades.

Former president Marc Ravalomanana was praised for putting 6 million hectares under protection and backing sustainable farming. But Mr Ravalomanana was ousted in March in a violent coup that led to a breakdown of law and order. And conservationists say that armed gangs are exploiting the security vacuum to pillage rosewood and ebony from supposedly protected forests on behalf of a so-called ''timber mafia''.


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Toronto Zoo Gorilla Will Choose His Baby's Name

For the past two months, the newest addition to the Toronto Zoo's gorilla family has been nameless, simply referred to by curious observers and visitors to the African pavilion as "the baby." But on Wednesday, Ngozi and Charles's offspring will finally have a name – and it will be one chosen by the proud daddy.

The shortlist, all starting with "N" to honour its mother, includes Nassir, Neo, Niko, Nigel and Nsambu.

The names were selected from an initial list of 5,000 submitted by visitors to the zoo in September. A panel of animal care staff narrowed the list down to 10. Over the past two weeks, 11,000 votes have been cast online to help choose the last five names.

Now, Charles will have the final say.

How will he decide? By turning to his stomach for help.

The five names will be posted on pails, each filled with one of Charles' favourite treats. His keepers are still deciding what foods to put out, to ensure neutrality among all the names. So when Charles finally picks a pail, he won't just be choosing his mid-morning snack.


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Villagers Register Police Case To Arrest Monkey

The cry for help aroused even the most hardbitten policeman’s sympathy. A mother was appealing to them to save her newborn baby from being killed by her jealous husband.

Jhumuri had already gone into hiding with son Kuna, so she was sending a written complaint, complete with her thumb impression, through a group of Samaritans to Astarang police station, Puri district.

The police immediately registered a case under three sections of the penal code: 363 (kidnapping), 366 (abducting for slavery) and 307 (attempt to murder).

Except that it turned out that the complainant was a female monkey.

The police, who realised this when they went to the neighbourhood to investigate, said they would not take action against the people who came with the complaint yesterday afternoon. “We have dropped the case,” a policeman said.

Indian police are often accused of refusing to register cases on complaints from poor, illiterate people, but this time the boot seemed to be on the other foot.

The complaint said Jhumuri’s “husband”, Raja, had already killed her first child and, after Kuna was born, had attacked it several times. Jhumuri had then fled home with her baby, prompting Raja and his gang of males to start camping in Astarang market, looking for her.

Jhumuri, the complaint said, had then fled to residential areas near the market and was hiding there. “She has been staying with us for the past few days,” Lingaraj Chotai, who has given shelter to Jhumuri, told the police.


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Search For Fugitive Monkey In East Tampa Called Off

The search for the mysterious monkey spotted in east Tampa is over, but the creature is still on the loose.

The primate, believed to be part of the macaque family, was spotted up a tree about 11 a.m. Wednesday in a residential community near E Sligh Avenue and N 30th Street, said Gary Morse, spokesman for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Officials first checked with nearby Lowry Park Zoo, but all of those monkeys were safe and sound, said zoo spokeswoman Rachel Nelson.

Then they took to the streets, trying to catch the creature as it roamed near Rowland Park. Officials first thought it may have been a large squirrel or raccoon, but they soon confirmed that this was a primate on the lam.

The search ended about 5:30 p.m. when officials lost sight of the monkey. It seemed best just to let it go.

"It's a fruitless effort to go looking for it," Morse said. "It's like looking for a needle in a haystack."


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Chimp Attack Victim Unveils Horrific Injuries

A US woman who was attacked by a 90kg chimpanzee revealed her heavily disfigured face on television on Wednesday, saying she is blind and has to eat through a straw, but isn't angry.

"I don't even think about it," Charla Nash said on Wednesday's episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show. "And there's no time for that anyways because I need to heal, you know, not look backwards."

Winfrey removed Nash's hat and veil to reveal her face, which was swollen and damaged beyond recognition. She had a large scar near the bottom of her face and a large piece of skin where her nose had been.

The February 16 attack occurred when the animal's owner, Sandra Herold, asked Nash, her friend and employee, to help lure the animal back into her house in Stamford, Connecticut. The chimpanzee ripped off Nash's hands, nose, lips and eyelids.

Police shot and killed the animal. Nash has been hospitalised since. She remains in stable condition at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio.


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