Wildlife officers caught and relocated hundreds of plundering macaques terrorising residents in Thailand.

Department of National Parks, Wildlife, and Plant Conservation officials laid traps in the Phra Nakhon Khiri area of Phetchaburi province to capture the crab-eating macaques that have exploded in number.

Some 200 monkeys were successfully caught. They were considered public nuisances as they raided markets and homes, vandalising property and stealing food and produce from the locals.

Yuthapol Angkinantana, President of the Provincial Public Sector Network, and Attapol Charoenchansa, Director-General of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife, and Plant Conservation, announced the results of the operation in a press conference on December 27.

Yuthapol said there were an estimated 1,204 macaques in the area. Staff had difficulties capturing the monkeys, which had learned to avoid the traps and attacked some of the personnel.

He said: 'The operation was difficult because these macaques are intelligent. When they know that other monkeys have been caught in cages, they will flee to another area. Our officers tried to trap and catch as many as possible, focusing on the leaders of the troops.'

He added that authorities planned to continue the relocation project until around 600 macaques have been successfully caught.

The captured macaques will be taken to the Huai Sai Wildlife Breeding Center, and released into an area mimicking their natural habitat 'so they can adjust their living and eating habits.' Once they have adjusted, the macaques will be returned to the wild.

National Parks Department Director-General Attapol said the relocation was launched because previous attempts at controlling the monkey population through sterilisation have failed.

He said that if successful, similar projects can be launched in Thai provinces also overrun with macaques.

Thailand's growing population of primates has become a problem as the animals are known to damage property, such as cars and buildings. Unafraid of the consequences, they have also started stealing food from tourists and locals.

Meanwhile, the Thai government is taking steps to manage the monkey population in the country, including creating sanctuaries, mass sterilisation programs, educating the public on how to handle the animals properly, and relocating them to more suitable habitats.