Cambodia Warns of 'Aggressive' Monkeys around Angkor Wat
2025-02-13
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1Cambodian officials are warning visitors to the nation's famous Angkor Wat complex of buildings to stay away from wild monkeys.
2They say the animals have become aggressive and destructive.
3The officials blamed the behavior of the macaque monkeys on visitors to the area who feed the animals or interact with them.
4Social media influencers - many of them on YouTube - use video of the monkeys to grow their online followings, the officials added.
5The macaques are native to forest areas surrounding Angkor Wat, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in northwestern Cambodia.
6The monkeys have become more destructive of property around the popular tourist area.
7Officials watching the animals told the French News Agency, AFP, that too much human interaction - especially by people filming material to publish online - had changed the monkeys' behavior.
8The agency that operates Angkor Wat is the APSARA National Authority.
9It said in a statement that a small number of YouTubers repeatedly feed the monkeys to create videos.
10This "changed the monkeys' natural behavior from being wild animals to domestic ones that are aggressive, steal food, and cause injuries among people."
11Agency spokesman Long Kosal told AFP that officials also worry about the monkeys causing damage to stonework that dates back centuries.
12"On top of biting visitors, they have been climbing up and pushing stones down, damaging temples," he said. Some macaques had also damaged information signs.
13Local officials have urged tourists to leave the monkeys alone while visiting Angkor Wat.
14They added that they are currently looking for "an appropriate solution" to solve the problem.
15Angkor Wat was the capital of the Khmer Empire.
16Building work began on the complex about 900 years ago.
17It remains Cambodia's top tourist site and earns a lot of money for the developing nation.
18More than one million foreign tourists visited the area last year.
19Since becoming a world heritage site in 1992, Angkor Wat and the surrounding forest have received increased legal protection and security.
20Officials have expressed hope that wildlife sightings around Angkor Wat will increase visitor interest and support conservation education efforts.
21Last year, Cambodian officials announced a plan to carry out a census of monkeys in public areas to identify and take away those presenting a danger to humans.
22I'm Bryan Lynn.
1Cambodian officials are warning visitors to the nation's famous Angkor Wat complex of buildings to stay away from wild monkeys. They say the animals have become aggressive and destructive. 2The officials blamed the behavior of the macaque monkeys on visitors to the area who feed the animals or interact with them. 3Social media influencers - many of them on YouTube - use video of the monkeys to grow their online followings, the officials added. 4The macaques are native to forest areas surrounding Angkor Wat, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in northwestern Cambodia. The monkeys have become more destructive of property around the popular tourist area. 5Officials watching the animals told the French News Agency, AFP, that too much human interaction - especially by people filming material to publish online - had changed the monkeys' behavior. 6The agency that operates Angkor Wat is the APSARA National Authority. It said in a statement that a small number of YouTubers repeatedly feed the monkeys to create videos. This "changed the monkeys' natural behavior from being wild animals to domestic ones that are aggressive, steal food, and cause injuries among people." 7Agency spokesman Long Kosal told AFP that officials also worry about the monkeys causing damage to stonework that dates back centuries. "On top of biting visitors, they have been climbing up and pushing stones down, damaging temples," he said. Some macaques had also damaged information signs. 8Local officials have urged tourists to leave the monkeys alone while visiting Angkor Wat. They added that they are currently looking for "an appropriate solution" to solve the problem. 9Angkor Wat was the capital of the Khmer Empire. Building work began on the complex about 900 years ago. It remains Cambodia's top tourist site and earns a lot of money for the developing nation. More than one million foreign tourists visited the area last year. 10Since becoming a world heritage site in 1992, Angkor Wat and the surrounding forest have received increased legal protection and security. 11Officials have expressed hope that wildlife sightings around Angkor Wat will increase visitor interest and support conservation education efforts. 12Last year, Cambodian officials announced a plan to carry out a census of monkeys in public areas to identify and take away those presenting a danger to humans. 13I'm Bryan Lynn. 14Agence France-Presse reported this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for VOA Learning English. 15_____________________________________________________ 16Words in This Story 17tourist - n. someone who visits a place for pleasure and does not live there 18domestic - adj. inside one country and not international 19appropriate - adj. suitable or right for a particular situation 20conservation - n. an organized effort that aims to protect animals and natural resources 21census - n. an effort to officially count the number of people living in a certain area