Monkey mating season – what you need to know

Birds do it, bees do it, even monkeys do it: they fall in love and make babies.

It’s that time of the year when the social dynamics between male and female Vervet monkeys change and baby monkeys arrive seven months later. It is mating season.

Ballito Rescue’s Laura van Rooyen said people will notice a lot of aggression between adult, male monkeys at this time of year.

“High ranking males attempt to take advantage of their status and, although in theory it is only the male troop leader (alpha male) who is allowed to seduce the adult females, the reality is that any male adult monkey will take his chance.

“If this goes unnoticed by the alpha male and his lieutenants as well as the high ranking adult females, all good and well. However, if the infidelity is noticed all hell breaks loose,” said Van Rooyen, who works closely with Monkey Helpline.

Also read: Monkeys: to feed or not to feed? Advice from Ballito Rescue

“One way of preventing infidelity in the troop is to rally the forces to repel adult male newcomers or to evict all unwanted sexually mature males from the troop. The consequence of this maintenance of order and discipline is lots of noise and fighting that ranges from simple chasing to mild scuffles and, not infrequently, severely damaging often fatal bites.”

None of this activity should be of any concern to humans generally.

“It is 100 percent monkey on monkey focused and does not spill over into aggression to humans or pets.”

Other than the threat of being severely bitten, she said fighting monkeys were also in danger of being attacked by dogs, or being run over by motor cars as the fight spills over onto roads, and into peoples’ properties.

During this period of mating related activity, she said Monkey Helpline was inundated with phone calls from people who fear that aggression among the monkeys will result in attacks by these monkeys, particularly the monkeys who are injured during the fights, against humans or their pets. These phone calls also include calls from people concerned about the well being of injured monkeys.

“We go to great lengths to assure them that their fears and concerns about the monkeys are unfounded. And in those cases where monkeys are injured, we will respond according to information received from the caller.”

For more information about dealing with Vervet related issues go to www.monkeyhelpline.co.za For advice or assistance with a sick or injured monkey call Steve Smit on 082 659 4711.

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