Baboons not baited

INLSA

A baboon given the name Cheeky in a scene from a National Geographic documentary that has angered residents of Pringle Bay, where it was filmed.

While National Geographic has come out guns blazing after being criticised for the way it produced and filmed its new programme, “Big Baboon House”, in Pringle Bay in the Western Cape, a local conservation group, whose focus is on primates, remain unimpressed.

The Cape Times reported on Tuesday that the primates were filmed with hidden cameras placed in a specially modified cottage, and were portrayed in the television series as “archetypal reality show characters”.

The documentary has angered residents in the area, who said it was unacceptable for National Geographic to have lured the animals to the house.

Carol Booth, co-ordinator of Durban-based conservation group Monkey Helpline, said that the programme was a definite “hands down” for National Geographic.

“In my opinion this project directly undermined the efforts that are being made daily by Pringle Bay residents and local authorities to discourage and prevent baboons from ‘raiding’ homes in their daily search for food , and will have the effect of conditioning those baboons into searching for other homes that were as accessible and where the food was as readily available under circumstances that the baboons would relish. It should not have been done!” she said.

Booth said that the process of training the baboons not to enter and raid homes was an ongoing one, requiring a constant reinforcement and consistency to ensure its success.

However, National Geographic, through its Africa division, rejected the charge.

“The baboons were not lured into the house, but ultimately entered (broke-in) of their own volition,” said Thandi Davids, head of marketing and sales for National Geographic Africa.

She said the house had been constructed on the outskirts of the town to observe the behaviour of “free-ranging baboons” in and around houses, with the purpose of better understanding how humans and baboons might better co-exist.

“Baboons were raiding homes and shops in the area before and during the production of the show, which is presented in the show, as are the townspeople’s reactions to the baboons,” Davids said. “In addition to observing how baboons behave in order to acquire human food, several tests were devised to determine how baboons might be deterred.”

The tests, she said, included using electric fences and snakes, as well as fake snakes, to capitalise on the instinctual fear of baboons, to keep them out of homes and off properties.

“Scientists with expertise in baboon behaviour assisted with the design of the tests and appeared in the show.”

Davids said the show and tests were considered to be a bold new way to see the behaviour of the baboons when they came in close contact with people, and inside their homes.

“We are confident our crews and production company did everything possible… to ensure that what we were doing was not going to be harmful to the animals, the community or the people involved in the production, and might offer some insights into the lives of these amazing and complex creatures,” said Davids.

She said that all of National Geographic’s standards and practices were adhered to at all times.

“Outside of food found in a normal household (and placed inside the built house), all other food was artificial – no real food was placed to bait the baboons,” she said.

Behavioural ecologist Phil Richardson had said at the time that while he had not seen the documentary, it did sound “unethical from the baboons’ point of view” – and from a filming point of view.

kamcilla.pillay@inl.co.za