CARIB WILD
The
Green Monkey of Barbados Article Provided By The Barbados Wildlife Reserve
Over the last fifty years, the focus on the island of Barbados shifted towards promoting a strong tourism sector causing sugar production to significantly decrease and plantations to almost disappear. With limited plantations, monkeys have found themselves leaving the gullies and making their way into our gardens.
A Brief History
In the mid-17th century, monkeys came from West Africa to the Caribbean on slave ships and were later sold as exotic pets. However, many were later released into the wild by their owners and quickly became seen as agricultural pests so that by 1680 a bounty of five shillings was given by the government for every head delivered to a parish church warden. Over the next hundred years, the monkey population stabilised, and monkeys lived mainly in the gullies of the island’s four most northern parishes, which at the time had a more limited population. The gullies were used for cutting firewood and as marginal lands for growing produce and fruit trees. By the 1950’s however, with the advent of kerosene and a reduced need for firewood, the abandoned gullies soon became re-forested. This offered a protected environment where monkeys flourished, as food was never a limiting factor with the nearby availability of crops such as sugar cane, (mainly on plantations).
Monkeys and Agriculture
For farmers, monkeys pose an understandable threat to their livelihoods and there are many farmers who experience moderate to severe crop losses. So, what can they do to discourage monkeys from their land? Scarecrows, noise repellants, and brightly coloured flags et al, are all good strategies but only work for a short period of time. This is because monkeys are highly intelligent and acclimate quickly, therefore making these strategies short-lived. Instead, how about planting fruit trees back in the gullies to encourage monkeys to stay closer to home or further away from your personal crops? Why not rethink the crops you plant and where? Consider planting foods less attractive to the monkey, close to their forested habitats which acts as a buffer and can help to minimize crop predation on the monkeys’ (and farmers) favourite foods. Also, in areas where the 16 | ANIMAL TALK | ISSUE 3
