absence of macaques at Batu Caves

Normally there are lots of macaques at Batu Caves, and the area is well known for them. They are fed by visitors, and often make a nuisance of themselves, by grabbing temple offerings from people, and even snatching bags and cameras etc. They can be quite aggressive and intimidating in their search for food.

Mother and baby looking for food

So when I went to Batu Caves in June 2010 I was very surprised to see that the macaques had gone. There were none at all at the temple, and only a couple of young ones hanging around at the bottom by Cave Villa. I assumed they had been removed by the authorities and I mentioned this on my website.

My next visit was 7 Aug and the monkeys were back. However there seemed to be less than in the past, and many of them were young ones. So I wondered if this is a new generation that has arrived. Maybe the parents are those that weren't caught earlier.

Needless to say the macaques were still enjoying human food.
This one has kiwi fruit and a biscuit

and this one has opened the can to get at the jelly

© Liz Price
No reproduction without permission