Do Rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) damage the unpalatable ‎crops during conflict with human? A case study from Rampur ‎village of Narsingdi District in Bangladesh

Human-Rhesus monkey conflicts were studied in the Rampur Village of Narsingdi District in Bangladesh. The village supports good homestead vegetations where three troops of Rhesus monkeys are living. Monkeys consumed plant parts of 10 species. Betel leaf vein (Piper betel), an unpalatable plant species of the monkey, was greatly damaged by them in this area but it is the main economic source for the local people. As a result, it is the major issue for human-Rhesus conflicts in this area. Local people are aggressive towards monkeys for damaging their major economic crops. For mitigating conflicts with monkeys, 60% people opined to strike them with stick and 30% preached to throw stones towards them. From this study, it indicates that unpalatable crops are not only damaged by Rhesus monkeys but also monkeys are injured during human-Rhesus conflicts. Scarcity of food and human aggression influence monkeys to invade and damage unpalatable crop of human settlements areas.