Aggressive vervet troop causes concern

STAFF at the Atholton Primary School are at their wits’ end following a series of unprovoked ‘attacks’ from what they believe is a single troop of vervet monkeys. Most of the incidents are said to have occurred around the school pool.

In recent months approximately four people have experienced what have been referred to as ‘monkey attacks’. They youngest of the victims was six-year-old uMhlanga resident, Maria King. She was reportedly playing around the pool when one of the monkeys grabbed her on her shoulder and bit her. Her mother, Candice, said that that while her daughter’s wounds have healed, leaving only a small scar, she has developed a strong sense of fear of the animals.

The concerned mum also told the Northglen News that she had witnessed another mum being bitten by a monkey. “Again there was no provocation. The mum was working on her laptop and did not even know that the monkey was there until he bit her. I have also heard of another incident where a domestic worker, who had brought a child for swimming lessons, had been bitten on her leg while she was playing on her phone in the shade. We don’t know what is going on. I have no issue with them ransacking my kitchen and stealing food. It is part of living in KwaZulu-Natal, but when they start biting people it raises cause for concern,” she said. A second parent was also bitten at the back of the stands near the pool, added King.

“We do not have a clue why the monkeys have become so aggressive in the last year or so, and there seems to be no solution at the moment. The attacks are concerning, as they are frightening enough for adults,” said the school’s headmaster, Aaron Graham, on Thursday last week. “We try and keep the school grounds clean and free of food, as to not attract the monkeys unnecessarily, but they are still at the school almost every day,” he said. Despite seeking assistance and advice from various bodies of authority, including the Metro Police, the Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa (Wessa), the SPCA and the local ward councillor, the school has not been able to find any solution or relief.

Monkey activist, Steve Smit, however, believes that pellet gun shootings are behind the cause of the primates’ strange behaviour. “These reports go against everything that we have learned about monkeys. There has to be a causal factor. In the last six months we have picked up four baby monkeys that have been killed by pellet guns. The troop would definitely respond aggressively to protect another dead, sick or injured member,” he said.

To resolve the issue Smit has suggested setting up a meeting with parents, organising a talk to educate the pupils about monkey behaviour and how to respond to their presence as well as observing the troop to determine an exact cause of the incidents.

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