Sir David Attenborough describes Barbary macaques as “remarkable”

On the 30th of December, a new BBC Dynasties special aired, featuring a troop of Barbary macaques living in the Atlas mountains of Morocco.

 

The one-off special, hosted as ever by Sir David Attenborough, utilised truly breathtaking videography of the species and underlined the main issues surrounding the decline in wild Barbary macaque populations.

 

Similar to the 8-minute video featured in our Monkey Movie room, the episode covered all of the seasons throughout the year, and what each season change brings to Barbary macaques.

 

The special focused heavily on the species’ fascinating hierarchal system as well as key behavioural tendencies such as male baby sitting, grooming, vocalisations, and interactions with rivals in the wild, in and out of the troop.

 

In typical Dynasties fashion, there was a strong message regarding the endangered status of the primate and the causes of the decline, particularly listing poaching, climate change, and habitat loss as the major threats.

 

Towards the end of the entertaining feature, Sir David Attenborough described Barbary macaques as a “remarkable species” that need protecting.

 

This documentary was absolutely huge for Barbary macaques as it was a great platform for the awareness of the species. It has underlined on a large scale the importance to further protect the rapidly declining wild Barbary macaque populations whilst emphasising the fascinating behaviours of the primate.
There are FEWER than 8,000 wild Barbary macaques left and wild populations have DECREASED by more than 50% in the last 30 years.
Since 1969, when our very first park opened in France, we have helped to support Barbary macaques and protect their beautifully unique natural behaviours.

 

 

Thank you Sir David Attenborough and the Dynasties team for the awareness that will be generated simply by producing this amazing episode.

 

If you’d like to watch the episode, please click here