"The monkeys are pooing on Ruby"

Seeing monkeys never gets old. Especially when they start throwing poo at your dog.

That’s what happened to Ruby, our Red Setter.

They’re a constant source of amusement when we see Ruby jumping up and spinning around in circles as they bark and howl at her. They're warning her. To Ruby, it's taunting.

Given she’s scared of cats, pigeons, and even feathers, the jumping and spinning is pure show. If one of them came anywhere near her, she’d scarper in an instant.

We’ve seen this happen on numerous occasions. When the howlers are crossing power lines. In the trees lining the beaches. It’s a regular occurrence. But this day was slightly different. 

We were at the beach with some friends. The kids were playing when Ruby suddenly stopped, head in the air, sniffing towards the trees. Looking the most dog-like and intelligent she ever could, which is saying something, as intelligence isn’t exactly her strength. Quite the opposite.

Then we heard the howlers, and she took off down the sandy path that led to the beach. The kids followed.

They were making quite the racket. Not so much the howlers. The kids. They found it hilarious. Given that the path led towards a road, I decided I should find out what’s going on. 

Not that I was particularly worried about the kids. It was more Ruby and her ability to work herself into a frenzy, charging around everywhere with only one focus.

When I got there, the kids were cackling and shouting,

“The monkeys are pooing on Ruby!”

Well that’s not something I ever thought I’d hear, after 38 years in England.

They weren’t wrong. 

These monkeys were sitting above her, trying to throw their faeces at Ruby. To be honest, if one had slapped her in the face, I don’t think she’d have batted an eyelid. She was so fixated.

The result was a mass of green. Yes, green. Monkey turd slathered all over the ground.

Whilst the kids were in hysterics, they didn't seem to realise how close they were to having monkey turd land on them. Or that they were walking around in it in bare feet.

This is where the challenge ensued. How do you manage to direct two kids back to the beach, who are being entertained by wild animals trying to shit on a dog? My trying to direct them back to the beach was never going to beat this. 

Ok, so let’s go with the next best option. Try to direct Ruby back to the beach. Well, that was useless too. She was in the zone. In an absolute frenzy. These monkeys were just sitting there on the power lines, the males' bright white testicles swinging about as they hurled abuse (and faeces) at her. Breaking her from this was going to be a challenge. 

All the while, people were walking past, finding the whole situation hilarious. Particularly the tourists. Not only did they get to see monkeys. They got to see a ‘special’ dog, kids enjoying the spectacle, and a Dad who was a bit clueless as to how to approach the situation.

“And quite frankly, I didn't want to be covered in monkey caca.”

Eventually the situation diffused, and I managed to get everyone back to the beach, miraculously without anybody ending up with monkey poo on them.

Now when we see the monkeys, and Ruby starts going haywire, there's a part of me that wonders if they'll do something similar again. But it's only happened once, out of all the times we've seen them. Who knows what caused it? Perhaps it was that particular troop, or something that made them feel more defensive than usual.

If you want to see what Ruby has to put up with, here's a little video of her ongoing battle with the howler monkeys.

Either way, monkeys are awesome to see, whether you’re leisurely enjoying yourself or actively searching for wildlife. And when you get to see behaviour like that, it only adds to the intrigue and the experience.

Especially when you spot the massive white gonads they carry around with them. 

As a male, I fear for them. It does not look comfortable in the slightest. If anything, they look like a hindrance, but there must be an evolutionary reason for it.

Howler monkeys are part of my everyday life here, but they're incredibly difficult to photograph. They're often just a black mass high up in the trees, with a canopy full of blown-out highlights from the sky seeping through. 

But even when I don't get a decent photograph, I still love seeing them. There's something about having monkeys swinging through the trees above you that makes you feel as though you're part of a more natural world.

Costa Rica has five species of monkey. Whilst the howlers are probably the most prevalent, the white-faced capuchins are a different proposition altogether. Clever, mischievous and occasionally savage, they're also much easier to photograph.

I spend a couple of days focusing on them on some of my photography experiences here. And whilst I can't promise you'll see monkeys throwing poo at a dog, there's a good chance you'll come away with a few monkey photographs of your own, as well as a bundle of other species.

If you're interested in finding monkeys in Costa Rica, or photographing them, hit me up. I'd be glad to share some pointers, or we can discuss how to do it together.

Or, the best way you can help me is to share it with someone you know who’d enjoy a fun wildlife photography experience.

More Field Notes next week.

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Field Notes is my personal newsletter about wildlife, photography, and life in Costa Rica. I share the encounters, adventures, and occasional chaos that come with building a wildlife photography business here.

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