An escaped monkey has been in found – in a garden eating from a birdfeeder – four days after going missing from Highland Wildlife Park.
The Japanese macaque has returned home and is being checked over by medical staff after it was captured in the surrounding area at around 10am today.
The monkey was confirmed missing from the zoo, near Aviemore, on Sunday.
It was first spotted in a garden in the nearby village of Kincraig, with one resident saying: “We went outside the house and there it was in the garden. It was amazing.”
Rangers from the park, armed with nets and tranquiliser guns, attempted to get the monkey down from a mound, however, it evaded capture.
On Monday, a thermal imaging drone was deployed in the search for the primate.
The next day, 45-minute footage of him was seen, however, park staff staff confirmed he was not in a location where they were confident they could “bring him in safely”.
Yesterday it was also recorded on drone footage as the search intensified.
‘Eating from a birdfeeder’ when caught
After the monkey is checked over by a medical team, he will return to the monkey house with four specially chosen males so that it can acclimatise.
The park said the tranquilliser that was used to rescue him can take some time to wear off.
Living collections operations manager at Highland Wildlife Park, Keith Gilchrist said: “We can confirm we have successfully caught the macaque that escaped from the park on Sunday, named Honshu.
“After a call to our hotline just after 10am our keepers and drone team made their way to a member of the public’s garden where the monkey was eating from a birdfeeder and successfully used a tranquiliser dart to catch him.
“The monkey is on the way back to the park with our keepers, where he will be looked over by one of our vet team and reintroduced to sub-adult males within the group.
“We want to thank everyone who has helped during the process and will continue to share any further updates.”