STOMPer Azmeey shares pictures of a monkey he saw on a tree at Blk 286 Choa Chu Kang Avenue 3 today (Aug 1).
Said the STOMPer:
"Monkey at Choa Chu Kang.
"This monkey was spotted at Block 286 Avenue 3."
This is yet another record of a long-tailed macaque (Macaca fascicularis) in urban Singapore. I wonder if it was a stray individual, or if there is a resident troop in the neighbourhood.
I would not be surprised if it came from the large expanse of forested land on the outskirts of Choa Chu Kang. This patch of forested land stretches from Choa Chu Kang and Bukit Batok, all the way along Jurong, and ultimately connects to the military training grounds in the Western Catchment Area. It's to be expected that long-tailed macaques would inhabit this mixture of secondary forest and scrub, with stray individuals dispersing into the surrounding urban neighbourhoods.
Last week, 2 of my friends on Twitter mentioned seeing macaques in Choa Chu Kang. I'm not sure if they were talking about the same individual, or if more than 1 monkey was involved.
(Photos by Asy'ari Johann Asni)
That the macaque is pictured with cup noodles is a cause for concern, since it is likely that urban macaques will quickly pick up the habit of scavenging from rubbish bins. Then there are the people who will deliberately feed them, despite the many reasons why this is not a good idea.
