Feral rhesus macaque facts for kids
Feral rhesus macaques are monkeys that live in the wild, even though they originally came from places like research centers or zoos. They have managed to survive and have babies in different parts of the United States.
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Wild Monkeys in Florida
Florida is home to several groups of wild monkeys, including rhesus macaques, squirrel monkeys, and vervet monkeys. Many of these monkeys probably escaped when hurricanes, like Hurricane Andrew, damaged zoos and wildlife parks.
As of 2013, more than 1,000 rhesus macaques lived in Florida. Officials had caught over 700 of these monkeys in the ten years before that. Many of the captured monkeys carried a virus called herpes B. Because of this, wildlife officials see these animals as a possible health risk to people.
Silver Springs State Park Monkeys
A group of rhesus macaques started living around Silver Springs in Florida around 1938. A man named Colonel Tooey, who ran boat tours, released the monkeys. He wanted them to make his "Jungle Cruise" ride more exciting.
There's a popular story that the monkeys were released for the Tarzan movies filmed there, but that's not true. The only Tarzan movie filmed nearby, Tarzan Finds a Son! (1939), didn't use rhesus macaques. This was partly because these monkeys can be quite aggressive. The monkeys still live and thrive along the Silver River today.
The Mystery Monkey of Tampa Bay
The "Mystery Monkey of Tampa Bay" was a rhesus macaque that lived freely in St. Petersburg, Florida, for about four years. It was a male monkey, weighing around 30 pounds, and it was very good at avoiding capture.
No one was sure where this monkey came from. It might have traveled from the wild monkey group at Silver Springs State Park, which is about 103 miles away. Or, it might have escaped from an owner who didn't have the right permit for it.
Many people became fans of the monkey. A Facebook page for it gained over 82,600 followers by February 2012. The monkey was shy and not considered dangerous to humans. Its ability to avoid being caught was compared to the TV show The Fugitive. People even said the monkey would look both ways before crossing the street! The monkey was mentioned in national news and even on an episode of The Colbert Report.
On October 24, 2012, wildlife officials finally spotted the monkey in a tree in St. Petersburg. They used a tranquilizer dart to calm it down and then captured it. The captured monkey was taken to Dade City's Wild Things animal sanctuary in Pasco County.
Wild Monkeys in South Carolina
There is a well-known group of rhesus macaques on Morgan Island. This island is one of the Sea Islands in South Carolina. These monkeys were brought to the island in the 1970s for research. Now, there are about 3,000 of them living there.
Wild Monkeys in Puerto Rico
The Caribbean Primate Research Center, part of the University of Puerto Rico, set up a research group of monkeys on Cayo Santiago. This is a small island off the coast of Puerto Rico. There are no animals that hunt monkeys on the island. Also, people are not allowed to visit the island unless they are part of the research program.
