The Council of Agriculture is to decide whether to remove Formosan rock macaques from its protection list in a meeting today, while an animal protection group has urged it to conduct more surveys before making a decision.
Formosan rock macaques, or Macaca cyclopis, are listed as one of the nation’s protected species, but some experts have suggested that it be removed from the council’s protection list.
The Forestry Bureau is to decide on the matter in a meeting with experts today, which is being held to discuss the classification of domestic wildlife.
Photo courtesy of the Yushan National Park Administration Office
As the species’ number has stabilized and their habitats are well maintained, many experts have advised the bureau to downgrade the monkeys to a non-protection category, bureau Conservation Division Director Hsia Jung-sheng (夏榮生) said yesterday.
Monkeys are known to raid farms in Taitung, Pingtung, Changhua and Yunlin counties, with farms growing litchis and fire fruits in Pingtung County’s Manjhou Township (滿州) experiencing the most damage, she said, adding that orange and mango farms are often affected too.
The bureau has asked local governments to file reports on agricultural losses caused by monkeys, Hsia added.
Manjhou farmers last month teamed up with Aborigines to scare away monkeys using the sound of gunfire, the effectiveness of which was questioned.
Monkeys, being very smart, might figure out that humans do not plan to kill them, township council chairperson Chuang Chi-wen (莊期文) said, adding that catching and imprisoning them would be better.
One farmer, surnamed Hsu (徐), said that monkeys in Yunlin County’s mountainous Gukeng Township (古坑) outnumber local residents.
They have tried to get rid of the monkeys by hiring guards, setting off firecrackers and setting traps, which has proved ineffective, Hsu said, adding that the government should control the species’ population by neutering them.
Concerned with the potential effect of removing the species from the protection list, the Environment and Animal Society of Taiwan yesterday issued a statement, calling on the bureau to conduct more surveys before reaching a decision.
Many farmers rent land in national forest areas in central Taiwan and Tainan, it said, citing studies conducted by Endemic Species Research Institute associate researcher Chang Shih-wei (張仕緯) in 2000 and 2013.
When farms are adjacent to forests, wildlife habitats are often ruined by humans, causing animals to steal crops, the society said.
The number of macaques varies widely in different regions, and the bureau has not been able to present comprehensive data about their living conditions, it said, responding to the bureau’s argument that the species’ number has stabilized.
To curb further agricultural losses, the bureau should set up a reporting and monitoring system, and help farmers with preventative measures, the society said.
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