Monkey Business

Monkeys Loose In St. Louis

Photo by Brian Mann on Unsplash

On Jan. 8, monkeys were spotted roaming the streets of St. Louis, Mo. The exact number of monkeys remains unknown, but a primate expert identified the monkeys as vervets, which are native to Africa. Vervets are small monkeys described as “very intelligent and social.” Officials don’t know where the monkeys originated from yet, as no zoo escapes occurred prior, and owning exotic animals in St. Louis is illegal. St. Louis Residents are advised to avoid the monkeys due to reports of them being aggressive and unpredictable. If residents spot a monkey, they are expected to report the sighting to the police. 

In addition to the monkeys, reports were released about a loose goat. The goat has been spotted by local reporters running loose on the streets wearing a collar. Throughout all the chaos, citizens of St. Louis began posting A.I. pictures of the animals and reporting fake sightings. These pictures are intended to be funny, but caused some issues in searches as officials struggle to find the origins of these animals. Once found, they are taken to a facility certified to care for these exotic creatures.