Alii to all viewers in Palau and to all viewers in Micronesia. What are invasive species and why do we need to eradicate them? Invasive species are animals and plants including its seeds, website eggs, approved spores, erectile or other biological material capable of propagating that species, that is not native to that ecosystem and whose introduction does or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human health. Monkey species in Angaur, Palau, are the Long-tailed Macaque Monkey.
This species of monkey has a wide distribution around the world. These monkeys were introduced to Angaur and have become invasive species. The monkeys of Angaur are descendants of a pair of monkeys brought by German phosphate miners in the early 1900s. In just a 100 years, the monkey population has exploded. With abundant food source in Angaur island, they are able to multiply with just 5 months gestation period. The exploding population of monkeys in Angaur has huge negative impact on the island biodiversity and the environment, negative impact on small scale agro-farming, negative impact to the economy. A huge population of the Long-tailed Macaque Monkey carry the B-virus which is lethal to humans. So why the need to eradicate macaque monkeys in Angaur, Palau? The people of Angaur are not happy with the presence of the macaque monkeys. Sustainable farming is impossible far from the homes and outside the village, because the monkeys eat and destroy food crops and cash crops. According to the PCS led nation-wide Bird Survey in 2005, Angaur has the lowest bird diversity in Palau. This is because the monkeys eat bird eggs and sometimes eat the young. Here are pictures of some of the crops and fruits that are eaten or destroyed by monkeys. There is a law from the Palau National Code that prohibits transferring monkeys from one island to another island in Palau. Please respect and adhere to this Palau law. A lot of monkeys were taken out of Angaur as pets. This practice is against the law. Some pets have escaped to the forest in Babeldaob, Koror and the Rock Islands. If the macaque monkeys establish themselves in Babeldaob, it will be a recipe for loss of Biodiversity. The eradication of the long-tailed macaque monkey in Angaur has began. The people of Angaur and the government of Angaur, Palau Conservation Society, Island Conservation, and the Palau National Government are working together to implement this enormous program. Everyone must be aware and know information about this project, and gain knowledge and understanding about this very invasive long-tailed macaque mokey. In other news By executive order no. 12-01 from Governor Vicky Kanai, dated May 17, 2012, to create a State Resource Management Planning Team for Airai state. On the same day Governor Kanai wrote Palau Conservation Society to assist the team develop the Resource Management Plan for Medal Ngediull Conservation Area. The team had their introductory meeting on June 14 at Palau Conservation Society.
Thank you for watching this outreach program from Palau Conservation Society, that srtives to protect biodiversity of Palau and Micronesia.
