Monkeys Galore

So on Saturday we found ourselves at the Vervet Monkey Foundation and what a place it is! There are over 700 vervets here Arthur Hunt set up the foundation after a long legal battle to keep his first orphaned vervet Regis that came into his life about 20 years ago. He was told by all the authorities including WWF, RSPCA and the South African Nature Conservation Board to kill it as they were vermin and a pest to farmers and local people. Arthur has since then devoted his life to finding everything he can out about these tiny bundles of cute.

The foundation currently has 12 enclosures, 55 introductory cages and we're helping to build new cabins and cages for a much needed sick bay. A process has been developed which enables orphaned vervets to be nursed to health and placed with a foster mother and a new troop within 3 - 4 weeks. Unfortunately the monkeys are still at risk of being shot so all the enclosures are surrounded by electric fencing for their safety. There is one troop of 'bandit' monkeys who wander free around the farm very much enjoying their freedom.

Last year the law was changed and the vervets are no longer classed as vermin and farmers now need a permit to shoot the monkeys, but a lot of work still needs to be done. The vervets are in fact a great help to farmers as they only eat over ripe fruit that cannot be commercially sold, eat insects that would otherwise damage the crops and there are 30 species of trees that depend on the vervet to eat the seeds and germinate them and deposit them to continue their growth.

The ultimate aim of the foundation is to create several vervet forests and release the troops there so they are finally completely wild and as they should be. We're just helping get things on the way!

Rx