Taiwan''s only native monkey species, the Formosan rock macaque, was until very recently a protected species in Taiwan. Once listed as an endangered animal, it was stripped of that protected status in 2019 due to the recovery of its wild population. In the years since, there''s been an uptick in monkey trafficking and abuse by unscrupulous humans. There''s also been a troubling rise in people keeping the primates as pets. Today in our Sunday special report, we turn the camera to our close relatives in the wild, and see how we''re doing them harm, even with the best of intentions.

Step into Shoushan National Nature Park in Kaohsiung and time itself seems to slow down. This lush mountain in the middle of the city is locally known as Houshan, which means “monkey mountain.” The Formosan rock macaques here are not afraid of humans, and they love snacking on human food.

This is Lin Mei-yin 林美吟, the chair of an NGO that works to protect macaques. As a child, she saw her father make frequent trips to Shoushan to research macaque ecosystems, which he’s now studied for 27 years. Now an adult herself, she’s decided to follow her father’s footsteps. Over the past 10 years, she’s been leading tours on the mountain to teach people about its monkey inhabitants.

Lin Mei-yin
Monkey protection NGO
When it comes to the issue of monkeys stealing food… Some people roll down their car windows and throw food when they pass areas with monkeys. There are even people who bring a plastic bag with snacks up the mountain to feed them. That’s how monkeys know that humans equal food.

Hunting and habitat destruction once pushed Formosan rock macaques to the brink of extinction. In 1989, the Wildlife Conservation Act was passed, listing the monkey as a Class III protected species and banned its hunting.

Conservation efforts over the past 30 years have helped macaque numbers recover. But farmers complain that state protections give monkeys free rein to ransack orchards, leaving humans with no way to fight back.

Chien Yu-hsuan
Farmer
We cover our passion fruit in protective bags. Maybe there hasn’t been much else for them to eat these days. So they’ve damaged the bags and sucked the juice out of the fruit. Every time I come, I have to throw away 20 or 30 bags. The monkeys are quite clever. You can scare them off. But after you leave, they come back.

Hwang Wen-be
Ecology and environmental science professor
Our residential areas keep expanding – expanding into their habitats. When they don’t have enough food, of course they venture into the human world. If they don’t have anything to eat, they have no choice but to eat the crops you planted.

In early 2019, the Forestry Bureau delisted Formosan rock macaques as a protected species, designating it as “general wildlife.” The legal change has left the species vulnerable to unscrupulous humans. Although “general wildlife” cannot be hunted without a license or disturbed, the law is much more ambiguous on their treatment. For instance, the Wildlife Conservation Act does not explicitly prohibit keeping general wildlife as pets.

Following a tip from an animal protection group, we traveled to a residence in Yunlin’s Sihu Township. At the entrance of the building, we found a macaque chained by its neck outside the door. The owner wasn’t home, so we spoke with their neighbor.

Voice of neighbor
They’ve had it for a year. Before it was owned by someone else. It bites children. The other owner had children, and the monkey bit. The owner didn’t know what to do, so he gave it to this person to look after.

The monkey has lived here for more than a year, without any intervention from law enforcement.

Wei Sheng-te
Yunlin Agriculture Department
The government has a task force for this.

Reporter
How often do they go on patrol?

Wei Sheng-te
Yunlin Agriculture Department
They also deal with other matters. Whenever there is a report, our colleagues go take a look. What they would usually do is confiscate the monkey and release it into the wild. Yunlin County has 20 townships. So the patrols usually happen in areas closer to the mountains.

Local officials say they’re short on manpower, and that they only intervene when an incident is reported. Even if there were enough staff, it would still be very difficult to catch all the people who have wild animals in captivity.

Chang Yun-ping
Kaohsiung Plant Inspection and Ecological Conservation
We often get reports along the lines of, “There’s someone walking a monkey at this park.” Such cases are hard to handle, because often, by the time we reach the place, they’re already gone. If you ask people nearby whether they know of anyone feeding or raising monkeys in the area, they say “I haven’t hear