Temple and pet primates in Thailand

Abstract

In Thailand, a predominantly Buddhist country, isolated populations of long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) especially may be found at temples in both rural and urban areas where they are provisioned by people making merit although the monkeys may be shot as agricultural pests in adjacent rice or corn fields in rural areas. At the same time, macaques and gibbons, especially the lar gibbon (Hylobates lar), have been kept as pets in both rural and urban areas. Gibbons even are reported to be the « favorite pet for Thais ». The number of primates being offered for sale has risen dramatically as legal and illegal timbering have reduced Thailand’s forest cover to perhaps no more than 12 %, peripherali-zing primate populations and making them more vulnerable to hunting. A provision in Thai law permitted individuals to possess as many as two primates or other wild animals of the same species — « a potential pair to promote breeding » — even though their capture and sale was prohibited. Changes in Thailand’s wildlife laws governing private possession of wild animals have caused owners to abandon pets to government agencies and temples. Private rescue centers offer acute care and permanent shelter for some of these primates but cannot cope with the numbers involved. Pilot studies suggest that rehabilitation and réintroduction may be feasible alternatives for some former captive gibbons.