TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A monkey was spotted on Wednesday (June 12) walking on telephone wires to cross a street in southern Taiwan.
A user of the Facebook group Pingtung County Chaozhou Township uploaded a video of a Taiwanese macaque crossing a street in town using telecom lines, reported Liberty Times.
In Chaozhou Township, Yongping Road is a crucial thoroughfare connecting to Provincial Highway 88. Passersby were surprised to see a Taiwanese macaque adeptly “tightrope-walking” the telephone wires to cross the street.
Macaque sightings in Pingtung's mountainous areas are not uncommon, but their habitat has recently expanded from the hills to the plains.
Some netizens expressed concern, noting that the presence of Taiwanese macaques in Chaozhou Township's busy downtown area indicates that the population has spread. They suggested that the lack of food such as mangoes in mountainous areas might drive the monkeys to search for sustenance in the lowlands.
They worried that if the monkeys "settle" in urban areas, conflicts with humans will likely intensify, posing risks to traffic and electrical safety. They advised further sightings should be reported to the relevant county authorities for appropriate action.
