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Monkey Scares: Humans Mimic Langurs for Sports Events
11 Aug
Summary
- Men are paid to mimic langur calls to deter monkeys from sports venues.
- The effectiveness of langur calls on rhesus macaques is scientifically debated.
- Legal restrictions prevent the use of actual langurs for deterrence.
Men are being hired to mimic the calls of grey langurs to prevent rhesus macaques from entering the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium for the BWF World Championships. This approach, previously used for the 2023 G20 Summit, is based on the idea that rhesus macaques are afraid of langurs. However, scientific research has not substantiated this claim, with some studies indicating the species coexist peacefully in the wild.
Experts suggest that the deterrent effect might be due to the human mimics' loud, aggressive vocalizations and the presence of sticks, rather than the specific sound of a langur. The article notes that the efficacy of such deterrents, like scarecrows, can diminish over time due to habituation, similar to how birds learn to ignore scarecrows.
Furthermore, legal statutes, including the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, and the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, prohibit the ownership, training, and exhibition of langurs and wild monkeys. This creates a need for alternative solutions, such as human mimics, to manage monkey presence at public events in urban India.
