Monkey Sharpens Rock And Uses It To Break Through Glass Enclosure At Zoo

Nov 30, 2019 by apost team

Humans used to have the arrogance to think they were the only animals that could make and use tools. That assumption was laid to rest long ago since many other species have been observed to make and use tools. A monkey being kept in captivity demonstrated its tool-using abilities recently in a daring escape attempt.

The monkey, a Colombian white-faced capuchin (Cebus capucinus), is being held at Zhengzhou Zoo in Central China’s Henan Province. The monkey's habitat is enclosed in glass. The monkey, who has no name, was observed to be looking at and feeling the glass carefully, and then it started to sharpen and shape a rock.

Once the rock was nicely sharpened, the monkey hit the glass with it repeatedly, shattering the glass, states The Daily Mail. Unfortunately, the glass used to keep the animals in their cages is extra tough and holds together even after being shattered, like a super strong car windshield, so the monkey could not get out.

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The monkey's escape attempt was foiled. The zoo staff reported that after the escape attempt, the monkey's sharpened rock was confiscated and its enclosure was searched. All of its rocks and other possible weapons were taken away.

Zhengzhou Zoo staff member Tian Shuliao reported to the Metro that this particular monkey had been previously observed to make tools out of rocks, such as a nutcracker that it used to crack open the walnuts the zoo sometimes gives to its monkeys.

He went on to say that this was the first time the monkey had been observed to be trying to escape from the zoo.

The Colombian white-faced capuchin is native to Central and South America. A large male can weigh in at almost 9 pounds.

They prefer to live in rain forests and dine on fruits, leaves, and insects. They live very long lives and many go on to celebrate their 45th birthday. They are not considered to be threatened or endangered in the wild at this time.

This is a great story about an intelligent animal staging a zoo-break. Consider discussing it with your friends and family over the holidays.