Rhesus Monkey spotted in Mysuru

• May have arrived in goods train or vegetable laden truck
• Except for Andhra Pradesh & Telangana, there are no records of its habitat in South India
• In 2022, a Rhesus Monkey was sighted in Nagarahole Forest

Mysore/Mysuru: People passing by Maharaja’s PU College off JLB Road spotted a monkey on the compound wall of the College yesterday afternoon, which is common in the city.

However, they were introduced to its rarity, as the monkey climbed a tree in the ground next to the old Deputy Commissioner’s Office.

It was identifed as Rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta), the macaque belonging to the primate family Cercopithecidae. These medium-sized monkeys are coloured from golden-brown to grey-brown. Rhesus monkeys spend most of their time on the ground, although they take to trees readily and have great agility in climbing and leaping.

Rhesus monkeys have the widest geographic distribution and can be found in Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam and China. In India, they are found in Rajasthan, Gangetic Basin and at times in the tropical forests of the southeast.  It is for the first time this species has been spotted in city as they are limited to North India and parts of Andhra Pradesh  and Telangana. Wildlife enthusiasts suspect that this Rhesus monkey might have entered Nagarahole in a goods vehicle from Andhra Pradesh or Telangana.

 It is common for these monkeys to climb vegetable trucks and one among them might have accidentally climbed onto a truck and could have landed up in Mysuru.

It is said that, the increased population of Rhesus monkeys in North India was forcing them migrate to southern parts and form the habitats.

Wildlife enthusiasts pointed out that, these monkeys are usually found in a group of 20 to 200 and apart from zoos in Karnataka, there are no clear information about their presence in any forests of the State. Their population is gradually expanding towards the South and could be a major threat to the endemic Bonnet macaque,” they opined.

Rhesus monkeys can thrive in a variety of climates and habitats. Their natural diet consists of fruits, seeds, roots, herbs and insects. But in areas of human habitation, they also eat crops and forage garbage. Rhesus monkeys live in groups consisting several adults of both sexes and their young. Males leave the troop at maturity whereas females tend to stay in the troops in which they were born forming consistent lineages and social traditions within the group.