Sint Maarten’s govt green lights plan to exterminate entire vervet monkey population

An overflow of vervet monkeys in Sint Maarten has resulted in the Caribbean country's government resorting to the highly controversial solution of culling. According to The Guardian, the government has cleared the plan to terminate at least 450 vervet monkeys as the proliferation of the species continues to be a nuisance in the country.

Local authorities will be funding the Nature Foundation St Maarten NGO to capture and subsequently euthanize the monkey population in the territory. “When a species establishes a population in an area that it isn’t native to there are often no predators to keep the population size under control,” said the foundation’s manager, Leslie Hickerson.

"Species management is an important aspect of keeping the island healthy for those who come after us,” Hickerson added. As per a press release issued by the foundation, “The number of monkeys in Sint Maarten will continue to grow if no measures are taken, and the consequences to Sint Maarten’s native ecosystems will be severe,” with growing complaints from farmers that the monkeys have been “raiding their crops and destroying their livelihood.” 

Is there any alternative to culling?

However, the decision has been criticised by many who suggest that there are less-extreme ways to tackle the issue, such as sterilisation. “I think a better approach and more publicly acceptable would be to vasectomise the males and sterilise the females,” said, Dave Du Toit, the founder of the Vervet Monkey Foundation in South Africa.

Suggesting an alternative, Du Toit said that the monkeys and locals of Sint Maarten can peacefully co-exist if research into food for wildlife can be prioritised. “Where, how and what food sources are disposed of that attract the monkeys needs to be addressed [and] what natural areas can be utilised by wildlife without interference,” he said.