Thailand's missing monkeys: why did hundreds of rhesus macaques vanish from a temple?

For decades, Tham Pha Mak Ho temple in north-east Thailand has been home to crowds of rhesus macaques. Every morning monks feed them with rice and fruit, while tourists give them bananas and seeds bought from the local street vendors. But over recent months, local people began to notice that when they came with offerings of food, fewer monkeys seemed to greet them. Local media reported claims that hundreds seemed to have disappeared from the temple in Loei province. Officials are investigating the mystery, said Pracha Saenklang, Wangsaphung district chief officer. It's possible that changing seasons, or the Covid pandemic,…