Rescuers set out across Tabasco, Mexico forests in search of howler monkeys that fell from trees due to a heatwave. Many of the monkeys are already dead.
TABASCO, Mexico – Heat-stressed, endangered howler monkeys are dropping out of trees and dying across Tabasco and Chiapas, Mexico, as the third relentless heat wave this season bakes the region.
Conservation and rescue groups have made impassioned pleas for villagers to leave fresh water in the jungle for the heat-sickened primates. One group, COBIUS, reported “massive deaths.”
Over 100 dead
COBIUS told Reuters that at least 100 monkeys have died so far.
Civil Protection officers said villagers have gathered the bodies in mass graves and covered them with lime for disposal, with few other options.
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A wild howler monkey is partially covered in lime spread by villagers over a mass grave where dozens of howler monkeys have been buried in Comalcalco, Tabasco State, Mexico, on May 20, 2024.
(YURI CORTEZ/AFP / Getty Images)
Authorities work to assess cause
While officials said the cause of death of this many primates appears to be heat-related, scientists have more work to do.
“Together with local authorities, academic institutions and civil society, we continue to coordinate the animal health protocols in Tabasco and Chiapas to determine the causes of death of primates,” posted the Secretary of the Environment and Natural Resources on social media. “We will tell you everything.”
The agency asked the public not to touch the monkeys until scientists discover the exact cause of death.
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A rescuer feeding a fallen monkey water.
(Civil Protection / FOX Weather)
“To date, various hypotheses are shared about the reason for these deaths, such as heat stroke, dehydration, malnutrition or fumigation of crops with pesticides, so studies will also be carried out to determine the cause,” said the secretary in a statement.
Tabasco’s Civil Protection Institute (IPCET) blames the deaths on dehydration due to high temperatures. IPCET sends out “brigades to rescue and assist” the monkeys, along with scientists from the local university, vet clinics and officials from an ecological reserve.
“At the points, the condition of the herds is inspected, water fountains are provided and food is provided, mainly fruits, so that the monkeys stay hydrated and can withstand the intense heat,” IPCET said in a statement.
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A Civil Protection official feeds the small monkey after it fell from a tree.
(Civil Protection / FOX Weather)
According to rescue groups, the drought, heat and deforestation of the area, along with climate change.
“The intense heat, coupled with the lack of rain in these months has caused damage to the habitat of monkeys, who do not find the vital liquid,” posted COBIUS.
The UMA Saraguatos Biopark claims their monkeys also suffer from smoke inhalation from a large wildfire burning in Tobasco. The spokesperson for a plantation agreed that fires were part of the problem.
“Several veterinarians in the area are attending monkeys that lead them to the brink of seizure with the following symptoms: they arrive with temperatures of 41 to 43 (105-109 degrees Farenheit), they have a brutal heat stroke from the conditions in which we all have here in Tabasco,” posted plantation Hacienda la Luz about the monkeys on the property.
A rescuer assessing the health of a fallen monkey.
(Civil Protection / FOX Weather)
“They bring parasitosis (disease from parasites), they can even bring viruses and bacteria that they normally have, but now their immune system is depressed, they have no access to water, or proper nutrition because NO TREES AVAILABLE, every day there are fewer trees, (and people keep burning),” the statement continued.
To help, citizens bring fruit and water to the forests. Civil Protection and rescue groups have said that monkeys need food and water in the tree tops, not the ground, though. The group asked for donations of rope and buckets to string sustenance closer to where the monkeys live.
Groups climb ladders to hoist food and water to the tree canopy.
(Civil Protection / FOX Weather)
Heat wave bakes southern Mexico
Highs hit 113 degrees Fahrenheit on a routine basis during the third recent heat wave since mid-March, according to Civil Protection. Ten cities broke all-time record temperatures last week, according to TecScience, and one city hit 118 degrees. At least 26 people have died due to the heat, according to the AP.
COBIUS said the monkeys started dying around May 4 and criticized officials for not investigating for 15 days, according to a local news magazine. The heat affects other animals too. Communities reported that birds and squirrels have also been dropping dead.
Part of the same heat wave will spread into areas of the South, Midwest and Plains during the Memorial Day weekend.
Quotes were translated by Google.