Wild Monkey Jumps On Woman's Back Looking For Sweet Treats

As the world gets smaller and smaller and the boundary between humans and wildlife becomes ever tighter. In some places in the world, it is a blended boundary.Show more

People visiting the Spanish city of Gibraltar often encounter wild Barbary Macaque monkeys…

Barbary Macaque are a part of the macaque genus of monkeys which includes 23 other species, most of which are in Asia. The Barbary species is one of the only ones that are indigenous to Southern Europe and Northern Africa, specifically Gibraltar in Spain and Morocco. In Gibraltar the monkeys live near a remote peak on the peninsula. They are quite smart creatures and have been known to invade people’s homes and get in their refrigerators. One article describes them as professional pickpockets. They will actually steal tourists’ backpacks and rummage through them because they know how to unzip the bags. Some of their desire for human sweet treats is that they have been illegally fed by visitors for decades. That is what we think this monkey was trying to get.

Usually, they feed the monkeys. However, this monkey wanted MORE and will do ANYTHING to get it! Wow!

The group of tourists on the road in Gibraltar is probably trying to get some pictures of the monkeys and also the view. It is probable that the monkey jumping on people’s backs was looking for their bags so he could steal food. Interestingly, did you know that Gibraltar has been controlled by the British since the 1700s! There is a legend that says as long as the monkeys are on the peninsula the British will rule. After WW2, Churchill even imported some Barbary monkeys from Africa when the population started to dip.