8 rare monkeys stolen from Alipore zoo

Arnab Ganguly, TNN 10 August 2009, 04:45am IST

KOLKATA: Eight Brazilian monkeys found in only two Indian zoos were stolen from Alipore Zoological Gardens on Saturday night. The theft of the Common Marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) - a midget-sized simian species measuring 14-18 cm — was detected on Sunday morning when at least 2 ft of the thick iron net of their cage was found sheared open.

Worse, this was not the first attempt to steal marmosets from India’s oldest zoological park. Thieves had targeted the monkey enclosure in March, but were chased away by guards. The theft has now cast a cloud over security arrangements at the zoo, which was handed over to a private agency four years ago. The involvement of zoo insiders has not been ruled out.

This is the first theft of monkeys from an Indian zoo. The species is in high demand for research in reproductive biology and endocrinology abroad (for their genetic proximity to human beings). A pair would fetch $3,000. The three adult males, three adult females and two babies would be a lucrative catch and a collector looking to add the species to his menagerie could also have organized the theft, said police.

“About a week ago, a Thai national was caught in Mumbai trying to smuggle out five Common Marmosets in a box. Three died of suffocation. These are used for research, kept as pets and are also eaten in parts of South-East Asia,” said Belinda Wright, executive director of the Wildlife Protection Society of India.

Apart from Kolkata, the only other zoo in India that houses the species is in Mysore. The eight marmosets were kept in a breeding enclosure (known as Lintu shed) located at the now-abandoned children’s zoo, close to the common boundary wall with the Alipore Bodyguard Lines. Carrying the Common Marmoset, which weighs around 450 gm, is no difficult task. It is suspected that the thieves had entered the enclosure with their hands covered as the little monkeys are known to bite. Police suspect the gang members escaped through either Alipore Bodyguard Lines or the Orphangunge Market, both located next to the zoo.

Around 8.30 am on Sunday, Sanjay Ram, one of the zoo keepers on the morning round, found the wire cage ripped and the eight monkeys missing. Incidentally, the keeper who should have reported for duty, also named Sanjay Ram, hadn’t turned up for work. “I was summoned hastily as Sanjay hadn’t reported,” Ram said. Police are inquiring why he stayed away on Sunday morning. Till late evening, no one had seen the truant keeper.

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