On Tuesday, a pig-tailed macaque (Macaca leonine) and a rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta) were released back into a green space on Da Nang’s Son Tra Peninsula by the Son Tra-Ngu Hanh Son Forest Ranger Division.

Earlier, Mr Tran Van Dung from the district’s Tho Quang Ward had used his own money to buy the near 7kg male monkeys from a group of local residents who had illegally captured them and intended to kill them for food.  Mr Dung then handed over the animals to the Division.

The pig-tailed macaque (Photo: tuoitre.vn)

The 2 monkeys belong to Group IIB which are rare animals restricted from being held in captivity, hunted, traded or killed.  However, the use of these types of animals for scientific research is permitted.

It is reported that Mr Dung often discovers different types of animals, including pythons and eagles, which have strayed from their natural habitats on the mountains while searching for food, and then he hands them over to the local forest rangers for release back into the wild.