The monkey was gulping down a plastic bottle he had taken from a tourist

Monkey drinking from a plastic bottle
Monkey drinking from a plastic bottle
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True to its nickname, "Monkey Island," Elephanta Island—located just off the eastern coast of Mumbai—is home to a large population of monkeys. While they don’t seem aggressive toward people, they are notorious food thieves.

I saw it firsthand when a tourist walking ahead of me had a bottle of water snatched away by a monkey. In a flash, the monkey grabbed the bottle, twisted the cap open with impressive ease, and began gulping down the water. The whole process was so fluid and practiced that it was as if the monkey had done this a hundred times before.

It reminded me of an experience I had years ago at a temple in Kathmandu, Nepal, where a monkey stole my Coke bottle. Back then, the monkey wasn’t able to open the cap—it simply held the bottle helplessly, licking at the spilled soda dripping onto a stone wall.

Compared to that, the monkeys here in India are on a whole different level of skill. Not only can they unscrew bottle caps effortlessly, but they also drink straight from the bottle with human-like dexterity. At this rate, it might not be long before they figure out how to pop open pull-tab cans as well.

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Mar 2025 ANIMAL INDIA

PHOTO DATA

No

12827

Shooting Date

May 2024

Posted On

March 7, 2025

Modified On

March 9, 2025

Place

Mumbai, India

Genre

Street Photography

Camera

SONY ALPHA 7R V

Lens

ZEISS BATIS 2/40 CF

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