A word of caution
A very good day to you, wherever you may be! It’s that time of the week again when we bring you more news about our beautiful home – Gibraltar.
When you think of Gibraltar, aside from tax free shopping, one of the things that might spring to mind are our famous Barbary Apes. Millions of tourists trek or go up to the top of the rock, by cable car or taxi, to see them every year.
The Apes are very cute and look tame, but we’d like to give you a word of caution. These animals are wild. They are not tame. They should be respected and regarded as such.
To have a happy experience visiting the apes, please note the following:
Do not feed the monkeys. They are regularly fed and given water by our local authorities. Feeding them could incur a very hefty fine if you’re caught.
It’s preferable not to carry food with you when you visit the areas where there are large concentrations of monkeys. They are mischievous in nature and will steal whatever they can when they can.
On that note, please carry your belongings safely; especially if you have a little shiny purse or bag. The apes have been known to run off with people’s possessions.
Do not attempt to hold, grab, cuddle or force a photograph with the monkeys. Apes tend to attack when they feel frightened, annoyed and harassed. Please just respect them as a wild animal.
If you’re wearing anything shiny, then cover up whenever you’re not having photographs taken. Apes love shiny things. They are attracted to them and we want your wedding dress to stay intact!
Should you be bitten, scratched or attacked by a monkey, which is highly unlikely if you follow our guidelines, we recommend you seek medical help to get the wound checked out. However, we would also like to point out that monkeys in Gibraltar are regularly caught to have medical check-ups, be chipped and tracked.
This is because Gibraltar values its tourism and with the amount of visitors we receive each year, our government wants everyone to be safe and enjoy their stay here.
Not only that, but the Barbary Apes, which we’ll tell you more about in the next blog are a species that are dying out in their native Northern Africa. Yet, our colony is flourishing, so much so that it’s now not uncommon to see the apes wandering around town, hanging around outside hotels and sneaking into people’s back gardens.
We just ask you to be sensible around the monkeys so your experience can be a happy one.
