All Vervet Monkeys To Be Killed? Sint Marteen Approves, Check Details

Labeled as a 'nuisance' by the locals this species of Vervet Monkeys in the Caribbean country, Sint Maarten would be culled as approved by the authorities.

The suggestion to execute the monkeys came after numerous farmers of the area complained that the monkeys were raiding their crops and destroying their livelihood apparently.

Though critics all across are suggesting that instead of killing the animals, sterilization or neutering might be a better way to handle the rising numbers of the monkey species.

As per reports, it is informed that Nature Foundation St Maarten NGO will be conducting a government-funded plan where The NGO has volunteered to capture the monkey and euthanize more than 450 monkeys in the coming three years.

Foundation's manager, Leslie Hickerson stated 

 "When a species establishes a population in an area that it isn't native to there are often no predators to keep the population size under control," 

He further added, "Species management is an important aspect of keeping the island healthy for those who come after us."

The gray-brown-bodied, black-faced, and fringed with white fur, Vervet monkeys are native to Southern and Eastern Africa; they were introduced to the Caribbean country in the 17th century.

The cull is unlikely to work according to Dave Du Toit, the founder of the Vervet Monkey Foundation in South Africa.

"I think a better approach and more publicly acceptable would be to vasectomize the males and sterilize the females," he explained.

Caribbean country Sint Maarten has Plan to Kill Entire population of vervet monkeys. pic.twitter.com/aNjzXAfU4f

— Shobana (@Shobana_29) January 20, 2023

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More about Vervet Monkeys

• The vervet, genus Chlorocebus, is also known as vervet monkey or savanna monkey.
• It has six known species and all of them are widely distributed semi-arboreal African monkeys. 
•  They are usually observed as quadrupedal. 
•  They occur throughout sub-Saharan Africa in savannas and dry deciduous forests. 
• They can also be found in the north and Egypt and in South Africa. 
• Closely related to guenons, they are formerly classified with them in genus Cercopithecus. 
• Some of them have also adapted to urban environments.

Vervet Monkeys: Physical features

• Vervet monkeys usually show features like pale yellow or white underparts and black faces. 
•  They have short whiskers and black hands, feet, and tail tips. 
•  Males Vervets possess bluish skin on the abdomen, bright light blue skin on the scrotum, and a red penis.
• The male weighs around 5.5 kg (12.1 pounds) on average and grows to 49 cm (about 19 inches) in length.
• The Females of the species are smaller and weigh 4.1 kg (about 9 pounds) on average they grow at the length of 42.6 cm (about 17 inches).
• They all possess cheek pouches that may be stuffed with food for ingestion at a later time.

Conservation status

• The bale monkeys of the species are regarded as vulnerable on the extinction list by the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN’s) Red List of Threatened Species but all other vervet monkeys are at low risk of extinction.
• In some areas, the vervet monkey populations are subjected to intense hunting pressure where people depend on bushmeat. 
•  As farmers of Sint Marteen regard these monkeys as nuisance animals because they easily adapt to agricultural environments and raid crops the authorities have approved the culling of the entire population.

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