Five immature male white-faced capuchin monkeys on Jicarón Island have developed a disturbing new cultural practice – repeatedly kidnapping baby howler monkeys from a neighboring endangered population. Over 85 camera traps remotely recorded the sightings, allowing scientists to pinpoint the origin and subsequent spread of this social tradition over a 15-month period. Camera trap footage spanning 15 months documented this unprecedented interspecies abduction behavior, which researchers published May 19, 2025 in Current Biology. The unusual behavior started with a single subadult male capuchin nicknamed “Joker” for his facial scar. Between January 2022 and July 2023, Joker and four other young … Continue reading 5 Capuchin Males Kidnap 11 Howler Infants on Jicarón Island—Up to 9 Days in Captivity Raises Conservation Alarms