Those mischievous monkeys.
T&T Express Reports.
Guaico residents protect Red Howlers
As the thunder sounded its first roll in the distance, the troop of Red Howler monkeys continued to partake of the fruits of a large mango tree. One adult male, balancing precariously on the tip of a branch, stretched his length to retrieve the half ripe fruit.
Still at the tip, his strong tail securely wrapped around the thicker body of the branch, he took one bite of the fruit, then discarded it.
He stretched to reach another at the tip, plucked it, then retreated along the branch to where it formed a sturdy fork along the trunk and sat, took a munch of the fruit, then promptly dropped it. He reclined along the branch and crossed his legs, seemingly satisfied with his meal.
Another large ‘Red’ was doing the same. He reached for the fruit, took one bite, then dropped it. This he did one after the other.
Children jumped around excitedly, pointing at the primates and mimicking their movements while the adults of the community sat and smiled, this being a familiar scenario each day.
Monkey territory
Most members of the community of Guaico Tamana (Sangre Grande region / Trinidad and Tobago) were born into what they call this ‘monkey territory’ just as their resident band of Howlers have been born into this part of village life. According to elder Ramsingh, the primates were always with them.
“These monkeys born and grow here. The older ones came out of the forest decades ago when estates were working. Those eventually died out, leaving these generations that were born out here and who continue to multiply being accustomed to people and who know everything about this place.”
“When I take up my power saw and start to sharpen and clean it to go to work on the estate, they sit right there eating. I throw it over my shoulder and start out to work and they talk monkey talk to me ‘gup gup gup gup’. They accustomed to everybody and everything.”
“All the villagers put out their chairs every afternoon and sit and watch them. Everybody is amused by them and they have become part of our community life. You could just stop in the road and watch them in the trees.”
As the rain descended heavily, the monkeys retreated into the arching shelter of a bamboo stool. This was the perfect place to protect themselves from the cold and wet. The canopy of the bamboo drooped lower and lower to form a perfect umbrella over the area, vines adding to its strength.
When the rain stopped, everyone anticipated their re-emergence into the open, but this was not to be as dusk was setting in earlier than usual with the rainy weather.
Like naughty children
From his experience, Ramsingh shared that they would have been each curled into a ball, head between and tail wrapped around as they are accustomed sleeping in the shelter of the bamboo.
“When you pass you know that they’re sleeping there because of the heaps of droppings you meet on the ground underneath. Though we all consider them to be part of our village family, they could be pests sometimes. They shorten our crops by eating or half-eating everything.”
“When usually our crops would last and everybody could share, in one month’s time when they pass, green, baby, flower, everything done. They eat out the mango, pomerac, cocoa, coffee, young leaves, everything. You see them sucking the orange like we plant it for them. But we look at them as naughty children and still love them.”
The main reason why these groups of primates thrive here is that hunters in the community have grown up with them and know them. They have accepted them as part of the village family and as such do not shoot them as is done in other areas. They go all out to protect them from harm from outsiders.
In their own way, members of the community of Guaico Tamana have contributed to the necessary protection of this species. They have indeed found sanctuary here.
