Cape Town - A juvenile male baboon died after he was shot with a pellet gun inside a naval flat in Da Gama Park and later pelted with rocks.
After being shot on Sunday, the baboon managed to run up a tree but was killed when children threw rocks at its head.
The young baboon fell into a river where its body was later retrieved by a field manager from Human Wildlife Solutions, which manages the baboon population on behalf of the City of Cape Town.
The shooting was the second pellet gun baboon death in a year in Da Gama Park – a juvenile male baboon was shot dead in July.
A ranger heard the shooting and found the body of the baboon on the roof of a garage but there were no witnesses, so a case docket was unable to be compiled.
The shooting took place at the Bluefin Court Flats at Da Gama Park. The area is home to naval personnel and their families.
SA Navy fleet communications officer, commander Cara Pratten, said they would not be commenting at this stage.
It is illegal to shoot baboons which are a protected species, but there have been several incidents in recent months.
Charges against the culprit are likely to be laid under the Animal Protection Act.
The Cape of Good Hope SPCA wildlife manager, Megan Reid, together with Human Wildlife Solutions rangers will be putting a docket together for submission to the Simon’s Town Police Station.
A Scarborough resident suspected of shooting two baboons with a pellet gun is also expected to appear in court next week.
Meanwhile, a large but non-aggressive male baboon was spotted in Wynberg on Monday roaming around the village.
The baboon, originally from the Constantia Troop, and known as CON4, was darted in Wynberg and taken to Smitswinkel Bay.
Within 24 hours he appeared to have successfully dispersed into the Cape Point Nature Reserve to join new troops.
Males disperse when sexually mature to find unrelated females.
They move between troops looking for mating opportunities but can be vulnerable during this time.
CON4 is a collared baboon so his movements will be able to be detected.
Council vet Dr Elzette Jordan said the current alpha male of the Smitswinkel group also lacked aggression so they were hopeful CON4 would be able to add to the genetic pool.
Cape Argus