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[Josh Greenman <joshg1973 AT yahoo.com>]

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Shoot-to-wound in baboon debacle

By Melanie Gosling

 Two baboons, one of them pregnant, were shot in the stomach in  
separate incidents at Pringle Bay in the last two weeks in what  
conservation officials believe may be "revenge attacks" by local  
residents.

 The second baboon was nursing an infant, which ran away when its  
mother was shot. Neither of the adults died immediately. Both had to be  
put down.

 Craig Spencer, head of the Overstrand Municipality's nature  
conservation department, said on Tuesday both baboons had been shot  
through the soft skin of their stomachs.

 "It appears someone shot to wound. A bullet in the stomach perforates  
the intestines and causes a slow and painful death. We are grateful  
that residents phoned us so we could alleviate the animals' agony,"  
Spencer said.

 "We regard this in a very serious light and any resident who shoots an  
animal out of revenge for some damage to their property will be sought  
out."

 In both cases Pringle Bay residents, who spotted the wounded baboons,  
telephoned Overstrand Municipality to report "a sick baboon".

 One was spotted on May 27 and the other on June 2. In both instances,  
municipal officials shot dead the wounded animals to put them out of  
their misery.

 Spencer said the baboon carcasses had been frozen. Once the bullets  
had been retrieved, they would be sent for ballistic tests to determine  
the type and calibre of firearm used.

 If the owner of the gun was found, the person would be charged with  
illegal hunting and the discharge of a firearm in a municipal area.

 "We are aware of the conflict between residents and baboons."

 "Many residents show a total lack of tolerance for any wild animals,  
not only baboons. We receive complaints every month ranging from  
mongooses tearing open garbage bags to dassies living in roofs. "

 "We even get complaints about grysbok and duikers eating residents'  
roses. Top of the list are complaints about porcupines eating garden  
plants."

 If residents took some simple precautions or modified their  
lifestyles, the conflict with wild animals would be reduced, Spencer  
said.

 "This could mean removal of fruit trees and vegetable gardens and  
putting security bars on windows. It is a small price to pay for the  
privilege of living in a biosphere reserve," he said.

 Although it was not the municipality's job to deal with conflict  
between wild animal and humans, Overstrand had "gone out of its way" to  
address the problem. This included establishing a wild animal  
management plan with Conservation Volunteers Australia, printing  
information pamphlets about baboons and closing the landfill site near  
Pringle Bay.

 "Many residents are not prepared make compromises to avoid conflict  
with baboons and are looking for a magic wand to sort it out. There is  
no magic wand. Baboons are there to stay and it is up to the residents  
to adjust," Spencer said.