SINGAPORE – Singaporeans are no strangers to monkeys and their antics, from daredevil stunts straight out of the Mission: Impossible action movies to hanging out on a huge crab replica at The Punggol Settlement.

The area around Beauty World MRT station has also seen its fair share of simian shenanigans through the years. Although shopkeepers in the area say the issue has somewhat abated, the recent sighting of a lone male macaque has raised concerns.

In response to queries from The Straits Times, the National Parks Board’s (NParks) acting group director of wildlife management How Choon Beng said the authority had received 90 cases of feedback in 2023 about long-tailed macaques in the area around Beauty World MRT station. The species can be found in the nearby Bukit Timah Nature Reserve.

“We are aware of the lone male macaque, and are actively trying to trap it,” said Mr How. If the macaque is successfully trapped, it will be relocated away from urban areas, he added.

The feedback received by NParks does not consist solely of complaints, but also sightings of the animals. It may include multiple sightings of the same animal, and does not indicate any increase or decrease in incidents of conflict with wildlife.

Most recently, the male macaque was caught on video fiddling with a POSB ATM at Beauty World Centre.

The original video was uploaded to the Singapore Incidents Facebook page on Jan 9. Facebook user Abby Hew, who uploaded the video, indicated that it was taken on Jan 8.

In response to queries from The Straits Times, POSB said it was aware of the incident, but did not provide details on the time or date it happened.

The bank said its ATMs are cleaned and sanitised daily. However, after it was made aware of the incident, it arranged for another round of cleaning for the affected ATM.

“POSB. Primate Official Saving Bank!” quipped a commenter on the Facebook video, while others joked that the monkey had forgotten its password.

In April 2023, citizen journalism website Stomp reported that monkeys were creating a disturbance in the Bukit Timah area, near an enrichment centre called Apple Pie Language in Chun Tin Road, which is near Beauty World MRT station.

The animals chewed on telephone and Internet wires, and defecated and peed indiscriminately, said an employee of Apple Pie Language who was quoted by Stomp.

Shopkeepers in the vicinity told ST that they were very used to the monkeys’ presence.

Throughout 2023, a troop of four to five monkeys was seen “a few times every week”, they said. However, only one macaque – the male, described as being “very naughty” – now remains as a regular visitor to the area.

When contacted by ST, a spokesman for Apple Pie Language said that although the situation has improved since its initial complaint, it is still concerned as the lone monkey “is very aggressive and may attack anyone”.

Photos and videos sent by the spokesman show the monkey playing with and biting what appear to be art supplies. The monkey can be seen lunging towards the person filming the video as it cuts out.

Mr Bernard Ng, whose family owns a confectionery shop in Chun Tin Road, said a group of monkeys has stolen food from his shop.

The animals snatch sealed packets of food displayed at the shopfront before nimbly climbing up the facade of the shophouse to the second storey, he said. There, they unwrap and eat the food, throwing the wrappers down from where they sit.

Mr Ng, 70, said this happens multiple times a week.

The monkeys have also made their way into the shophouse via an open window to steal food stored upstairs, and upset an incense container that was set outside the window of the second storey.

“We don’t open our windows any more,” said Mr Ng.

He said that various shopkeepers in the area have complained to NParks, which stationed officers in the area to bait the monkeys into a cage they set up nearby, but to no avail.

“They can’t do anything if the monkeys don’t go near,” he conceded.

A sales assistant at the Pet Lovers Centre outlet in Chun Tin Road, who wanted to be known only as Pei, told ST that the monkeys would try to push open the glass doors to enter the store, and would sometimes prevent customers from entering by blocking the entrance.

Staff at the store would often have to hold the doors shut to prevent the monkeys from making their way in.

Photos and videos taken by Pei’s colleagues show a monkey perched on the handles of the glass doors, and one sitting at the entrance of the store, looking in.

Eateries in nearby Cheong Chin Nam Road, which lies parallel to the main road, say they have not had such issues.

Mr Md Ishak, an employee at Al-Azhar Restaurant, said that neither the eatery nor its customers had experienced direct disturbances from monkeys. However, he said the monkeys can often be seen rummaging through the dustbins on the pavement near the main road, looking for food.

Mr Ishak speculated that the constant human presence along that stretch of shops may be a deterrent to the monkeys.

NParks is taking other measures to mitigate macaque-related issues and manage the population of these animals, said Mr How, including monkey guarding – conditioning macaques away from residential areas and towards forested areas – removing food sources such as fruit trees which may serve as attractants, trapping operations, and engaging residents and stall owners on steps they can take to minimise macaque intrusion.

The measures include studying the monkeys’ population ecology, modifying their habitat (for example, removing fruit trees), and relocating intrusive individuals away from human dwellings.

NParks is also working with stakeholders to carry out sterilisation as a long-term population control measure.

The authority cautioned against the feeding of macaques, as cooperation from the public is needed for the above efforts to be effective. Anyone caught feeding macaques can be fined up to $5,000 for a first offence, and up to $10,000 for a second or subsequent offence.

“If macaques approach you in the open, remain calm and quiet and do not make any sudden movements or maintain eye contact with them. Instead, look away and back off slowly. Keep away from the area until they have left,” said Mr How.

“Macaques have also associated plastic bags with the presence of food and will try to snatch them when they see them. Do keep plastic bags out of the sight of macaques when you spot them.”