It's So Hot in Mexico that Howler Monkeys are Falling Dead from Trees

Mexico City: It’s so hot in Mexico that howler monkeys are falling de from trees. At least 83 of midsize primates, who are known for ir roaring vocal calls, were found de in Gulf coast state of Tabasco. Ors were rescued by residents, including five that were rushed to a local veterinarian who battled to save m.

“y arrived in critical condition, with dehydration and fever,” said Dr. Sergio Valenzuela. ”y were as limp as rags. It was heatstroke.”

While Mexico's brutal heatwave has been linked to deaths of at least 26 people since March, veterinarians and rescuers say it has killed dozens and perhaps hundreds of howler monkeys.

In town of Tecolutilla, Tabasco, de monkeys started appearing on Friday, when a local volunteer fire-and-rescue squ showed up with five of creatures in bed of truck.

Normally quite intimidating, howler monkeys are muscular and can be around two feet (60 centimetres) tall, with tails as long again. y are equipped with big jaws and a fearsome set of teeth and fangs. But mostly, ir lion-like roars, which bely ir size, are what y're known for.

“y ( volunteers) asked for help, y asked if I could examine some of animals y h in ir truck,” Valenzuela said Monday. “y said y didn't have any money, and asked if I could do it for free.”

veterinarian put ice on ir limp little hands and feet, and hook m up to IV drips with electrolytes.

So far, monkeys appear to be on mend. Once listless and easily handled, y are now in cages at Valenzuela's office. “y're recovering. y're aggressive ... y're biting again,” he said, noting that's a healthy sign for usually furtive creatures.

Most aren't so lucky. Wildlife biologist Gilberto Pozo counted about 83 of animals de or dying on ground under trees. die-off started around May 5 and hit its peak over weekend.

“y were falling out of trees like apples,” Pozo said. “y were in a state of severe dehydration, and y died within a matter of minutes.” Alrey weakened, Pozo says falls from dozens of yards (meters) up inflict ditional damage that often finishes monkeys off.

Pozo attributes deaths to a “synergy” of factors, including high heat, drought, forest fires and logging that deprives monkeys of water, she and fruit y eat.

For people in steamy, swampy, jungle-covered state of Tabasco, howler monkey is a cherished, emblematic species; local people say monkeys tell m time of day, by howling at dawn and dusk.

Pozo said local people — who he knows through his work with Biodiversity Conservation of Usumacinta group — have tried to help monkeys y see around ir farms. But he notes that could be a double-edged sword.

“y were falling out of trees, and people were moved, and y went to help animals, y set out water and fruit for m,” Pozo said. “y want to care for m, mainly baby monkeys, opt m.”

“But no, truth is that babies are very delicate, y can't be in a house where re are dogs or cats, because y have pathogens that can potentially be fatal for howler monkeys,” he said, stressing y must be rehabilitated and released into wild.

Pozo's group has set up a special recovery stations for monkeys — it currently holds five monkeys, but birds and reptiles have also been affected — and is trying to organise a team of specialised veterinarians to give primates care y need.

Belatedly, federal government acknowledged problem Monday, with President Andrés Manuel López Obror saying he h heard about it on social media. He congratulated Valenzuela on his efforts and said government would seek to support work.

López Obror acknowledged heat problem — “I have never felt it as b as this” — but he has a lot of human problems to deal with as well.

By May 9 at least nine cities in Mexico h set temperature records, with Ciud Victoria, in border state of Tamaulipas, clocking a broiling 117 F (47 C).

With below-average rainfall throughout almost all country so far this year, lakes and dams are drying up, water supplies are running out and authorities have h to truck in water for everything from hospitals to fire-fighting teams.

Low levels at hydroelectric dams have contributed to power blackouts in some parts of country.

Consumers are feeling heat as well. On Monday, nationwide chain of OXXO convenience stores — nation's largest — said it was limiting purchases of ice to just two or three bags per customer in some places.

“In a period of high temperatures, OXXO is taking measures to ensure supplies of products for our customers,” parent company FEMSA said in a statement. “Limits on sale of bagged ice seek to ensure that a larger number of customers can buy this product.”

But for monkeys, it's not a question of comfort, but of life or death.

“This is a sentinel species,” Pozo said, referring to canary-in-a-coal mine effect where one species can say a lot about an ecosystem. “It is telling us something about what is happening with climate change.”