Cape Town's urban baboon management programme, once a conservation and community success story, has the potential to once again be a world-class example of how to manage wildlife on the urban edge. But...
What would you do if baboons entered your kitchen and trashed it while you were out at work, despite all your doors and windows being closed? What would you do if you saw an irate neighbour shooting lead pellets at a female baboon with a baby under her chest?
What if you came across neighbours disagreeing loudly about how best to respond to the constant presence of baboon troops in your suburb, and shouting abuse at each other?
Current chaos
These are not fanciful questions: they confront many of us who live on the South Peninsula in Cape Town, where a baboon management programme that performed well for more than a decade is becoming dysfunctional.
Over the past four years there has been a steady increase in the number of baboons foraging in suburban homes and gardens, restaurants and hotels. This can result in costly damage to property, in some cases costing tens of thousands of rands. Baboons in homes can traumatise domestic animals and residents, especially the aged and small children.
In addition to the impact on communities there has been a dramatic increase in injuries and deaths of baboons from shootings, motor vehicles and dogs. As the...
