Thousand Stone Apes Enter Residents' Settlements In Sukoharjo Allegedly Due To Kamaruu Difficult To Find Food

A herd of monkeys entered residential areas to find food in Gentan Village, Sukoharjo, Central Java, Tuesday (27/6/2023). (ANTARA/Bambang D M)

A herd of monkeys from the Thousand Stone hills in Sukoharjo Regency, Central Java, has increasingly descended on residential areas.

The monkeys went to the residents' neighborhood in Gentan Village, Bulu District, Sukoharjo to look for food.

Sukini (38), a resident of Beseng Hamlet in Gentan Village, said that the number of monkeys entering the settlements was uncertain, but sometimes there were more than 50.

According to him, monkeys who come from the hills sometimes seize food brought by children. Even enter people's homes or food stalls to get food.

Sukini suspects that the monkeys entered the village because of the difficulty of getting food in the forest during the dry season.

Fahri (45), another resident of Gentan Village, said, "Defense for hunger dares to disturb residents, storming into the house to take food."

He said that long-tailed monkeys that enter settlements sometimes play in the roof tiles of the house and cause damaged tiles.

Apart from Sukoharjo, a herd of animals also descended on a number of villages around the forest of Mount Gandul, Wonogiri Regency.

Villagers have reported the incident to the village government, but until now there has been no adequate effort to overcome the entry of wild animals into residential areas.

Head of the Wonogiri Sukatno Forest Management Unit (BKPH), whose working area includes forests in the Batu Seribu hills, said that the hall had tried to prevent wildlife from entering settlements.

According to him, the hall has planted many fruit trees in the forest environment. However, during the dry season, the apes still run out of food sources and enter settlements.

A herd of monkeys from the forest of Mount Gandul, according to Sukatno, has invaded residential areas around the forest area to find food.

BKPH Wonogiri coordinates with village, sub-district, and district governments to address the problem.

"Efforts to suppress the monkey attack have not been maximally successful, because its existence is a rare protected animal, which should not be eradicated immediately," said Sukatno.

In order to prevent apes from leaving their habitat, he said, BPKH continued planting fruit tree seedlings to provide feed sources for long-tailed monkeys.

According to him, in March 2023, fruit tree seedlings were also distributed to residents to be planted on the edge of the forest.