Young, male capuchin monkeys have started kidnapping the babies of nearby howler monkeys. Why? Maybe boredom.

“The capuchin monkeys have dark fur and light face, and this [baby] had lighter fur and a dark face.” The only other primates on the island are howler monkeys, and this infant’s coloration ...

On Jicarón Island, a lush patch of tropical forest floating off the coast of Panama, something strange is unfolding in the treetops. A gang of young white-faced capuchins, clever monkeys already ...

The scientists nicknamed one capuchin kidnapper Joker because the scar at the side of its mouth reminded them of the "Batman" villain.

Capuchin monkeys on a remote Panamanian island are abducting babies from howler monkey families, in a first-of-its-kind trend. At first, the researchers thought it was a case of “one individual ...

Young male capuchins have developed a strange trend of acquiring baby howler monkeys. It doesn't end well for the babies.

These capuchins are abducting babies from howler monkeys—for fun? A young male nicknamed Joker was probably the first to start carrying a howler monkey baby on his back for days on end. Then a ...

Scientists have captured footage of an unusual social tradition in capuchin monkeys abducting infant howler monkeys – a never-before-seen behaviour in wild primates. Researchers at Jicarón ...

Capuchin culture can be bizarre Prior to these abduction observations, this island population of capuchins was already notable.

Scientists spotted surprising evidence of what they describe as monkey kidnappings. The capuchin monkeys were seen carrying at least 11 howler babies between 2022 and 2023.

Over 15 months on Jicarón Island, researchers saw five capuchin juveniles abduct 11 endangered howler monkey infants — all for no clear purpose.

Because the actual abductions likely occurred in the trees, they were not captured on camera. But the researchers note that adult howlers are nearly three times the weight of immature capuchins, so a ...