You can’t have your figs and eat them too

It’s a lame saying, but its true—I’ve learned that much in life.

Today apparently Wrinkle Belly had a hankering for figs. In the morning, the group slowly meandered to an area in the forest where there was a fruiting ficus tree. This particular location is frequented by at least 3 different troops of monkeys—all wanting some of those tasty figs. I could hear howling from two of the other groups that were in proximity to the tree, but this did not phase Wrinkle Belly. He was the first monkey of the North group to bravely cross over and enter the giant ficus. Some pandemonium definitely broke out as soon as the North group entered the scene. Two males from a neighboring group raced over and tried to chase them out of the tree. There was massive howling all about. and monkeys were moving every which way. It was all I could do to keep straight who my focal animal was.

At first it seemed that all was lost for Wrinkle Belly’s clan. They retreated as the others chased them out of the tree, but they managed to hold their ground. They stayed in the area of the ficus and just waited until everything settled down. Then they rushed back in and had themselves some figs and young leaves from the tree. Wrinkle Belly’s group did not tarry too long in this area though. After grabbing a quick snack, they high-tailed it back down the camino and continued eating some really crazy foods that will make for a very interesting dissertation. So, I guess if you are part of Wrinkle Belly’s group, you really can have your figs and eat them too.

Just one more noteworthy tidbit: Sophie saves the day… Yesterday, Spud (2 months old) climbed off of Sophie’s back while she was feeding. Spud amused himself by swinging from his tail, and Sophie just went on her merry way. Either she forgot about her baby, or she thought he would be able to follow her. When Spud looked around and realized his mother was no longer in the tree, he kind of freaked out. He tried to go after her but was scared, so he started screeching. Eventually, Sophie turned around and went back for him. She reached up to bend a branch down, so that Spud could climb right on her back. He did just that and then hung on for dear life. Maybe you had to be there, but I thought that was really sweet.

That’s enough tales of the monkeys for one night. I’ve got to get to bed so I can do this all over again in the morning. Thanks for reading.