5. Herding The Monkeys

This chapter examines how parks manage monkey movements on a day-to-day basis. The park is not the only feeding ground because the troop continues to forage, to some extent, in the forest beyond it. Without a monopoly on the food supply, park control over troop movements is limited. The alternative food supply available in the forest has the potential to divert monkeys away from the park, especially at those times of year when natural forage is most abundant and appealing. For the monkey parks, as commercial visitor attractions that aim to be open to visitors on a year-round basis, this poses a potentially serious problem. Park staff employ various tactics to tackle this problem and are broadly successful in minimizing the problem of monkey absence at times of visitor presence. The chapter describes the challenge of 'herding' open-range monkeys for touristic display.Keywords: herding; monkeys