Baby monkey obediently lets mom groom him on a busy street in India

Monkeys are extremely entertaining animals that resemble people more closely than any other creatures, which is possibly why we find them so fascinating. We can't help but watch with rapt attention as they eat, play, or groom each other. Even their facial expressions resemble ours very closely. We see a little bit of ourselves when we watch them walk on their hind legs.

These monkeys wander freely throughout Jaipur, India. They are wild monkeys that live in the forested areas surrounding the city, as well as on the rooftops and in abandoned structures that can be found all throughout the city. Monkeys have adapted to the human population increase and have become skilled at finding food in discarded containers and compost piles. People also feed the monkeys, simply out of kindness, but also out of a religious belief that monkeys represent the personification of Hanuman, one of their gods, who has a face that resembles a monkey.

One of the most fascinating behaviors of monkeys is their constant grooming of each other. One monkey will sit patiently while another parts their hair and picks out any fleas or parasites that are found. The grooming is a mutually beneficial practice, because it is also a source of food for the monkey doing the grooming. This baby monkey sits very obediently while his mother looks him over. She gently pushes him down on the wall and he lies down obediently, remaining completely still while the other monkeys around him run and jump.

This troop of monkeys has been given a large cluster of bananas and some peanuts by a kind vendor. They quickly eat their meal while watching closely for signs of larger monkeys who will chase them away to get at the bananas. In this environment, eating quickly and cautiously is a necessary means of survival.