Authorities in South Carolina say that the final 4 of 43 escaped monkeys have been recaptured after two months of dwelling within the woods, weathering a uncommon snowstorm and being tempted again into captivity by peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
The rhesus macaque monkeys, all females, made a break for it after police say an worker didn’t totally lock their enclosure at Alpha Genesis, a facility that breeds them for medical analysis – recognized to locals as “the monkey farm”.
The recaptured monkeys seemed to be in good well being, stated Greg Westergaard, Alpha Genesis chief government officer, in a press release relayed by the Yemassee police division in a social media put up with out additional particulars.
Whereas they have been on the unfastened, the realm noticed its first snow in seven years, accumulating as much as 3in (8 cm).
The rhesus macaques made a break for it on 6 November and principally hung round close to the power. They’re in regards to the dimension of a cat, weighing roughly 7lb (3kg). Authorities stated they have been all again in captivity on Friday.
It seems a employee unintentionally left the gates unlocked when the monkeys escaped, Westergaard stated in November. Staff have been presupposed to lock and latch one gate earlier than opening one other, however all three gates and latches have been left unsecured.
The monkeys posed no threat to public well being, stated Alpha Genesis, federal well being officers and police.
Facility workers stored a watch on the monkeys and set out humane traps. Most have been lured again with meals and given peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in addition to “monkey biscuits” – a high-protein Purina Monkey Chow specifically formulated for rhesus macaques.
The power breeds the monkeys to promote to medical services and different researchers. People have been utilizing the monkeys for scientific analysis for the reason that late 1800s. Scientists imagine rhesus macaques and people break up from a typical ancestor about 25m years in the past and share about 93% of the identical DNA.
The compound is a couple of mile (1.6km) from downtown Yemassee and about 50 miles north-east of Savannah, Georgia.
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