Rebuilding proper relations with our “monkey neighbors”

The area surrounding Shoushan in the Gushan district of Kaohsiung City is Taiwanese macaque habitat; however, in recent years, people’s habit of feeding the monkeys has changed the natural lifestyle of these primates. Monkeys’ increased reliance on human feeding has resulted in a loss of their foraging instincts and raised the incidence of clashes between humans and monkeys. In response to this, Pingtung University’s Institute of Wildlife Conservation has been promoting the “Monkey Neighbors Project” to inform people how to correctly treat wild monkeys.

On top of the Monkey Neighbor Project's “Three Don’ts Policy” foundation – don’t contact, don’t feed, and don’t interfere – a number of unusual and attention-grabbing signboards have been made in the hope of influencing residents and tourists. Many elderly gentlemen and ladies who have attended the lectures say they have been spreading the message with any tourists they meet. Hopefully, everyone coming to Shoushan will begin to understand the proper way to protect the Taiwanese macaque and have lots of fun too. In essence, the only effective way to protect our "monkey neighbors" is by refraining from feeding them.

以下為中文對照

高雄市鼓山區壽山周邊是台灣獼猴的棲息地之一，近年來由於人類餵食的行為，改變了台灣獼猴原本的生活型態。猴子逐漸依賴人類餵食而失去覓食的本能，也造成許多人猴衝突。屏科大野生動物保育研究所推動「猴厝邊」計畫，希望從人的這一方開始改變，幫助民眾建立對待野生獼猴的正確觀念。

「猴厝邊」計畫傳達的動保觀念就是跟獼猴相處的「三不政策」，不接觸、不餵食、不干擾。同時建立許多有趣、引人注意的告示牌，希望能對當地居民、遊客有一定的影響力。參加過講座的老先生、老太太們表示，他們接受過正確觀念之後，遇到遊客都會幫忙宣導，希望大家來到壽山玩得開心，也能對台灣獼猴有正確的動物保育觀念，不要餵食牠們，才是真正保育牠們的方式。