Monkeys terrorize wildlife and residents in Mount Moreland

A huge population increase in Vervet Monkeys  Chlorocebus pygerythrus threatens the ecological balance of the natural environment in Mount Moreland.

Any interference in the natural environment by man has an impact on the wildlife, positive or negative, in the case of the monkeys mans involvement has had a very negative impact on the monkey populations.

Man has made the problem now those who would like to fix it within government are being hampered from doing so by those who caused the problem in the first place.

LEAVE THE WILD MONKEYS TO BE WILD MONKEYS THEY DO NOT NEED YOUR HELP IT ONLY CAUSES THEM TO BE THE DEAD VICTIMS OF YOUR INTERFERENCE.

If monkeys are going to die those that feed and interfered with them are the ones to be held fully responsible for their deaths, not those who care about all the other animals including monkeys that suffer as a result of those who have caused a huge monkey problem.

Problem Monkeys terrorize residents at Mount Moreland

Anyone with the slightest bit of common sense would understand that If a human takes a very cute baby wild monkey captive out of its troop in the wild, then takes it into a human house, cuddles it, wraps it in blankets, teaches it to eat exclusively human foods then one day releases it back into the wild that a problem monkey has been raised. A problem monkey that does not know the ways of the wild, does not know how to be a wild monkey, does not no its natural foods and has no fear of man. 

If one then takes that monkey that does not know how to be a monkey because it has never interacted with wild monkeys and was to release it into a wild troop what is going to happen? Certainly it will starve to death if it does not get the only food it knows that is only found in human homes, so it has two choices, starve to death or steal food out of human homes. That now not so cute not so little monkey is faced with no choice at all other than to starve to death if it does not get its food from humans now that it knows it´s way around human homes knowing where the food is kept and how to get to it, also having no fear of man it has no choice but to become a home invader and a thief for its survival. 

A terrorist monkey has been created

Monkeys learn fast from one another however it would appear that a monkey that has learned the good life and tasty high energy foods does not appear to want to give them up for a natural diet of very bland leaves shoots and the occasional wild fruits that wild monkey populations survive on. On the other hand wild monkeys readily take to the good life and the tasty high energy foods that they get introduced to by human raised and habituated monkeys, so very soon the entire troop has been taught the art of home invasions and the sweet pickings that are to be found in human cupboards and refrigerators and even to know how to open them. A whole troop of “monster” problem monkeys has now been created.

DO NOT FEED MONKEYS IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO SEE THEM SUFFER OR BE EUTHANIZED

Anyone with the slightest bit of common sense will realize that those misguided, do gooder monkey hugging fanatics who illegally capture “rescue” cute little baby monkeys from their wild troops then illegally keep them in captivity “mothering them” totally alienating them from their natural ways and foods, imprinting them with a totally foreign way of life inclusive of totally unnatural human high energy foods would know that cute little baby monkeys are being made into “monster” problem monkeys.

Anyone with the slightest bit of common sense will realize that when these “monster” problem monkeys that have been created by these misguided do gooder monkey hugging fanatics are then again illegally released back into wild troops of monkeys that they are going to cause huge problems for the wild troop setting them up for "terrorist attacks" on humans. 

The very same goes for injured wild monkeys to a slightly lesser degree that are captured then illegally kept in captivity while they undergo the transformation from a wild monkey to a “monster” terrorist monkey then are again illegally released back into the wild.

The truth of the matter is that these misguided do gooder monkey hugging fanatics who clearly do not understand natural processes or do not care, who meddle with nature, and disregard the laws of our country are the wild monkeys biggest enemy. 

When whole populations of problem monkeys in the very near future have to be euthanized there will be a huge outcry from those very bigots and their acolytes (faithful disciples) who have been the very cause of the monkey problem in the first place.

Report all incidents and complaints to the responsible government authority

Please report all incidents where monkeys terrorize humans or enter into homes to the responsible local government officials and councilors and definitely not to the monkey helplines they have helped caused the problem and have no authority whatsoever under the law to deal with the problem.

Sibusiso Sithole

City Manager

City Hall Dr Pixley KaSeme Street

PO Box 1014, Durban, 4000

Tel. +27 (0)31 311 2100

Fax. +27 31 311 2170

dovec@durban.gov.za

                                         

Kenneth Livhuwani Mabila

Manager Natural Resource Division

EThekwini Municipality

Tel: 031 311 6716

Cell: 083 676 5895

Fax: 031 2666702

Kenneth.Mabila@durban.gov.za

Mount Moreland  Councilor Ward 58 ANC

Mxolisi Ndzimbomvu

082 8446 079

Phone Zodwa   at 032 948 1025 to make an appointment to see him

Cllr Mxolisi Ndzimbomvu, Ward 58, Support Centre, 187 Woodpecker Rd, Waterloo

Please send me a copy of your complaint to vervetmonkeytruth@gmail.com which I will personally hand to our ANC City Councillor and the City Manager to ensure they receive attention.

Mount Moreland Conservancy Important Bird Area

In 2007 Mount Moreland was awarded Important Bird Area Status by Birdlife South Africa which has put both the local and international spotlight on our community and the way we live and manage our natural environment here at Mount Moreland.

Important Bird Areas form part of an international conservation programme implemented and run by BirdLife International and its worldwide partners to protect and conserve bird species.

IBAs protect and conserve birds and the habitats that support them and in so doing, also protect the overall Biodiversity which includes plants, insects, reptiles and animals.

Although the area within the Mount Moreland Conservancy has been awarded Important Bird Area status the vast majority of the residents clearly do not know about, understand, or support this important status. In fact the majority of owners and residents living in Mount Moreland by their actions and lack of actions show that they clearly do not care at all about the natural environment in this very important place that we live.

Mount Moreland is certainly not  the home to the European or Barn Swallow  as it is often refered to they live and breed in Europe and only use our reedbeds as a temporary roosting site when feeding in this area.

We do however have our very own resident breeding swallow the Lesser Striped Swallow which is abundant here in Mount Moreland in addition we have large numbers of other rare and beautiful birds that need habitat and protection.

One of our own resident Lesser Striped Swallows in my garden

If one takes a look around the area all one sees is invasive alien vegetation in particular the Brazilian pepper tree Schinus terebinthifolius that is so very destructive to the natural environment growing on private properties in particular properties that have still to be developed. If one takes a closer look at the undeveloped properties that are mostly overrun by alien invasive vegetation one would be appalled to see the extent of dumping on these properties by the residents of Mount Moreland.

Considering the natural treasures that those living in Mount Moreland are custodian of this attitude and total lack of concern for the natural environment is most disgusting and needs to change.

Lesser Striped Swallow nest in an outbuilding on my property at Mount Moreland

Every single person living in this area should be doing everything possible to change their negative mind sets and misguided senses of order and to play their role in conserving the treasures that we are custodian of by firstly cleaning up their own acts.

Crested Barbet which lives and breeds in a nestbox that I erected for it right in 

front of my kitchen window bringing food for its young

Nature conservation starts at your own front door so please do your part giving attending meetings and giving lip service to the environment does nothing only actions on the ground count.

Over the next weeks, months and years I will be posting photos, observations and offering tips to improve that disgusting and shameful situation we find ourselves in today.

The rare and very beautiful Amethyst Starling feeding young in a nest box that I errected 

at Mount Moreland