"The Barbary macaques in Gibraltar have learned to eat dirt to soothe stomach upsets caused by consuming too many sweet, fatty, and salty snacks fed to them by tourists."
"Over 612 hours of observation, researchers documented 46 different instances of geophagy among at least 44 individual monkeys out of the territory's 230 macaques."
"This marks the first time Gibraltar's macaques have been formally documented engaging in the behavior of geophagy, which has been studied in other species."
Gibraltar's Barbary macaques have been observed engaging in geophagy, consuming soil and clay to alleviate nausea caused by unhealthy foods provided by tourists. This behavior was documented over 612 hours of observation, with 46 instances recorded among at least 44 individual macaques. The macaques, the only wild monkeys in Europe, typically eat a natural diet of seeds, fruits, and vegetables, but the influx of fatty and salty snacks from visitors has led to this unusual adaptation. This study represents the first formal documentation of geophagy in these macaques.
Read at www.scientificamerican.com
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