A resident living near Seac Pai Van Park in Coloane complained early this week about a “very noisy” gibbon in the park, and yesterday the Municipal Affairs Bureau (IAM) told The Macau Post Daily that IAM staff have already tried to minimise the impact of the noise by the monkey, hoping that residents can “understand and tolerate” the noise, so as to protect the precious biodiversity together with the bureau.
The resident said during a phone-in programme hosted by Ou Mun Tin Toi, the Chinese-language radio channel of government-owned broadcaster TDM, that he was affected by the monkey’s noise in Seac Pai Van Park every day, underlining that the noise is “very loud”.
The bureau told The Macau Post Daily that the monkey is a northern white-cheeked gibbon (aka Nomascus leucogenys) which has been living in Seac Pai Van Park since 1995 after being abandoned.
Northern white-cheeked gibbons are first-class national protected animals in mainland China, while they are also listed as a critically endangered (CR) species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
According to the National Geographic website, there are over a dozen recognised species of gibbons ranging from north-eastern India to southern China to Borneo.
IUCN is an international organisation working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. CR species means the type of animals that are at an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild.
The bureau said that the northern white-cheeked gibbon is a wild animal that likes the outdoor environment very much and does not like to stay indoors for a long time. Meanwhile, screaming in the morning is a natural behaviour for the animals, such as the northern white-cheeked gibbon, to present their feelings and status among the group, as well as to attract a spouse, so the bureau said that it is “meaningful” for the northern white-cheeked gibbon to scream.
The bureau said that its staff have tried to minimise the impact of the screams by increasing facilities and arranging for the monkey to stay indoors at night. However, the statement underlined, it is not good for animals if too many people interact with them and control their behaviour, so the bureau hoped that residents can understand and tolerate the screaming by the animals, in order to protect the world’s precious biodiversity.
According to previous media reports, the “very noisy” gibbon’s Chinese name is “hak jai” (“black boy”). In 2018, he was 24 years old. Even at that time, there were complains about his loud screams.
According to scientific reports, the estimated life span of gibbons varies between 20 and 40 years, with a reported longevity maximum in captivity of 60 years.
This undated picture shows the “very noisy” northern white-cheeked gibbon sitting on a branch in Seac Pai Van Park in Coloane.
Photo: MPGD
