Two hikers found themselves in intensive care in Taichung yesterday following an assault by an orangutan of unknown origin, according to Chinese-language media reports.
The dawn attack occurred along a hiking trail on Takeng (大坑) mountain, just outside Taichung City.
One of the hikers, Tsai Tzu-pin (蔡資彬), 67, suffered injuries to his leg, back and genitals during the scuffle with the aggressive primate. The other, Chen Yen-ching (陳燕清), 65, also suffered wounds to the limbs.
PHOTO: CHANG HSIEH-SHENG, LIBERTY TIMES
Tsai said the male orangutan pulled off Tsai's pants and tried to grab his genitals during a tussle which lasted almost 20 minutes.
The orangutan then let go of Tsai and turned to Chen, who hit the animal with his cane, the report said.
Chen then wrangled with it for another hour or so, and finally succeeded by whispering gentle words to persuade the animal to let go of him.
The orangutan first appeared in the area on Wednesday morning, but escaped from firefighters and veterinarians who tried to catch him, even after being hit with two shots from anaesthetic guns.
The two hikers said the orangutan first appeared to be asking them for food, which they did not have on hand. It then suddenly turned wild and started attacking them, the hikers said.
The two men were found by other hikers and sent to the nearby Cheng Ching Hospital.
The attack prompted a massive hunt by firefighters and agricultural and forestry experts across the mountains. The orangutan was finally caught around noon after eating bananas containing anaesthetic pills and having been given several more shots of anaesthetic.
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