News Monkey business: coping with Japan's aggressive simians

"They are so smart, and they tend to sneak up and attack from behind, often grabbing at your legs," city official Masato Saito tells the AP. "I have never seen anything like this my entire life." Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata), also called snow monkeys, are well-known for their habit of bathing in hot springs during the winter. They typically live in troops of about 20 to 30, but the groups can sometimes have more than 100 individuals. These monkeys were once considered endangered in Japan, but their population has rebounded, and they are now listed as least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The animals can live about 22 to 27 years. Male Japanese macaques weigh about 25 pounds while females are about 18.5 pounds.

Click to expand...

Fuji Municipal Government employees and a contractor were preparing a tranquilizer gun near JR Fujikawa Station to capture Japanese macaques when it accidentally fired and a hypodermic needle-tipped tranquilizer dart hit the left arm of a woman nearby at around 3 p.m. on Aug. 29. She was at the scene to tell the city workers about a monkey sighting. The woman was rendered unconscious, but recovered her senses about two hours later. Her life was not in danger, officials said. Shizuoka Prefectural Police and the municipal government are investigating the detailed cause of the accident.

Click to expand...