Cheeky monkey!

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wautd
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Cheeky monkey!

Post by wautd »

Macaque borrows photographer's camera to take hilarious self-portraits

To capture the perfect wildlife image, you usually have to be in exactly the right place at precisely the right time.
But in this instance, David Slater wasn’t there at all and he still got a result.
Visiting a national park in North Sulawesi, Indonesia, award-winning photographer Mr Slater left his camera unattended for a while.
It soon attracted the attention of an inquisitive female from a local group of crested black macaque monkeys, known for their intelligence and dexterity.
Fascinated by her reflection in the lens, she then somehow managed to start the camera. The upshot: A splendid self-portrait.

'One of them must have accidentally knocked the camera and set it off because the sound caused a bit of a frenzy, said Slater, 46.
'At first there was a lot of grimacing with their teeth showing because it was probably the first time they had ever seen a reflection.
'They were quite mischievous jumping all over my equipment, and it looked like they were already posing for the camera when one hit the button.
'The sound got his attention and he kept pressing it
'At first it scared the rest of them away but they soon came back - it was amazing to watch.
'He must have taken hundreds of pictures by the time I got my camera back, but not very many were in focus. He obviously hadn't worked that out yet.
'I wish I could have stayed longer as he probably would have taken a full family album.'
Slater, from Coleford, Gloucestershire, was on a trip to a small national park north of the Indonesian island of Sulawesi when he met the incredibly friendly bunch.
The crested black macaque is extremely rare and critically endangered.

These were part of a study group near a science base in the region, home to researchers from Holland.
'I teamed up with a local guide because I knew about the apes and wanted to photograph them,' said Slater.

'I walked with them for about three days in a row.
'They befriended us and showed absolutely no aggression - they were just interested in the things I was carrying.
'They aren't known for being particularly clever like chimps, just inquisitive.
'Despite probably never having any contact with humans before they didn't feel threatened by our presence, and that's why I could walk with them during the day.'
Aww... this is just adorable :luv:
(see pics in link)
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Norade
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Re: Cheeky monkey!

Post by Norade »

That is pretty awesome and goes to show that primates of all kinds tend to be at least as intelligent as we give them credit for and often times more so.
School requires more work than I remember it taking...
aieeegrunt
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Re: Cheeky monkey!

Post by aieeegrunt »

If they can figure out a camera, they can figure out a rifle.
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Korvan
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Re: Cheeky monkey!

Post by Korvan »

aieeegrunt wrote:If they can figure out a camera, they can figure out a rifle.
Seeing which way they pointed the camera, I think that would be bad news for the monkey!
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Tolya
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Re: Cheeky monkey!

Post by Tolya »

These are some of the best shots that I have seen lately. Really.
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Iroscato
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Re: Cheeky monkey!

Post by Iroscato »

It's clear they're extremely intelligent and not just fiddling with it, they even posed for the camera!
How long before we see a macaque rights lobby...led by the macaques themselves?!?! :shock:
Yeah, I've always taken the subtext of the Birther movement to be, "The rules don't count here! This is different! HE'S BLACK! BLACK, I SAY! ARE YOU ALL BLIND!?

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