In the Japanese city of Yamaguchi, wild macaques injured 42 people, including children and the elderly. Police are now using guns loaded with tranquilizers to stem the tide of wild monkey attacks.
This is reported by the BBC.
Local media reported, in particular, that a four-year-old girl was injured when monkeys broke into her apartment. Other residents of the city also reported numerous cases of macaques invading their homes.
"I heard crying coming from the ground floor, so I hurried down. Then I saw a monkey hunching over my child," said one of them.
"Itʼs rare to see this many attacks in a short period of time. Initially, only children and women were attacked. Recently elderly people and adult men have been targeted too," said one city official.
Japanese macaques, once a vulnerable species, have recently increased in numbers. They are now listed as a species of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. However, according to a Yamagati University study, the recovery of their population "has provoked serious conflicts between humans and macaques."
According to scientists, the reason lies in reducing the distance between humans and macaques. Also possible reasons for monkey attacks may be changes in human behavior and changes in the forest environment where primates live.