Posted on 05/15/2006 7:04:16 PM PDT by Charlespg
AMSTERDAM, Netherlands May 15, 2006 (AP)— Bears killed and ate a monkey in a Dutch zoo in front of horrified visitors, witnesses and the zoo said Monday. In the incident Sunday at the Beekse Bergen Safari Park, several Sloth bears chased the Barbary macaque into an electric fence, where it was stunned.
It recovered and fled onto a wooden structure, where one bear pursued and mauled it to death.
The park confirmed the killing in a statement, saying: "In an area where Sloth bears, great apes and Barbary macaques have coexisted peacefully for a long time, the harmony was temporarily disturbed during opening hours on Sunday."
"Of course the habitats here in the safari park are arranged in such a way that one animal almost never kills another, but they are and remain wild animals," it said.
Witness Marco Berelds posted a detailed report on the incident, including photos, on a Dutch Web site. He said one Sloth bear tried unsuccessfully to shake the monkey loose after it took refuge on the structure, built of crossing horizontal and vertical poles.
Ignoring attempts by keepers to distract it, the bear climbed onto a horizontal pole, and, standing stretched on two legs, "used its sharp canines to pull the macaque, which was shrieking and resisting, from its perch."
The bear then brought the animal to a concrete den, where three bears ate it.
The zoo said it "usually wasn't possible" for keepers to intervene when an animal killed another.
The park plans now to move the Barbary macaques which are large monkeys but often inaccurately called "Barbary Apes" to another part of the park, it said.
On the Net:
http://www.advergraphics.nl/beeksebergen/Beer vs Aap.pdf
Of course. The bear was grumpy due to a nasty heat rash that was caused by Global Warming.
In fact Ursus is the closest relative to Canis.
Paging PETA!
The only thing missing is that the maquque is actually from south of the border. Doing work that American monkeys won't do. (border ping)
And then... someone will check the facts.. and all will be right with the world. ;>)
I laughed my @$$ off at your ping. The catz went nutz, they thought I was dying. I had to keep them from dialing 911.
Yep. I've got catz that can call 911.
Getting them to not touch all of the big buttons on all of the walls has taken some training.... But when it's important....
/johnny
Ok, now lets see the feasting.
/johnny
Now the only thing missing is that...
A big part of my doomsday stockpile is spices and sauce fixins. And pasta, of course.
The horseradish is in my garden and it's doing very well! Come October or so, I'll be out there planting garlic and trying some fresh ground horseradish!
/johnny
I hate it when that happens to me.
/johnny
I don't mind it so much. Not that climbing an electric fence, running from a sloth-bear happens a lot around here......
But I've got catz to throw at any carnivore lurking around. And good, tasty catz they are.... Catz first, then me. That's the order.
/johnny
I dont think the monkey's family gonna sue the bears, do ya?
Maybe they need to consider feeding the bears a little more.
good for a laugh ping
MANBEARPIG
My son's response: "The bears were happy."
The posts on this thread have out done 'Unnnnghhh'!
Timothy Treadwell died because he ran out of monkeys. We have to import 'em up here. They don't grow on trees ya know............
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