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Cultivated Crops Accounted for 49% of Rhesus Macaque Feeding Records in Central Nepal

Rhesus macaque eating maize
Conservation · Human–wildlife conflict

A year-long field study of a wild group of rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) in a forest–farm mosaic in central Nepal found that cultivated crops accounted for about 49% of the group’s annual feeding and foraging records. When stored crops and human garbage were included, human-associated foods made up just over half of the yearly feeding records, while wild foods remained an important part of the diet.

The macaques consumed 41 of the 58 crop species available in the study area. Maize was the most important cultivated food, followed by oranges and potatoes; together, those three crops accounted for about half of crop-feeding time. Feeding on these crops increased when their monthly productivity was higher, showing that the macaques adjusted their use of farmland to changing food availability.

Chasing did not reduce crop feeding

Farmers attempted to drive the macaques away in more than four out of five recorded crop-feeding events, often with people and dogs, but these interventions did not reduce either the duration of crop feeding or the amount of crop damage. Larger macaque feeding parties were associated with longer feeding events and greater damage.

Maize damage averaged about 1.5% of yield

During the maize season, the estimated damage averaged roughly 50 kg of dry maize kernels per hectare, about 1.5% of maize yield. The authors therefore concluded that although crop feeding formed a major part of the macaques’ diet and frequently brought people and macaques into conflict, the measured effect on local farmer food security was limited overall. They caution, however, that losses can still matter greatly to individual smallholders, especially near forest edges.

The authors recommend locally coordinated, non-lethal measures rather than relying on repeated individual chasing. Suggestions include community guard groups at common access routes, concentrating protection during peak crop periods, securing stored food and garbage, and testing crops or fodder plants that macaques rarely eat.

Sources and image credit

  1. Koirala, S., Adhikari, B., Rai, D., Katuwal, H. B., Yang, W., Li, M., & Garber, P. A. (2026). The Crop Feeding Behavior of Rhesus Macaques in a Forest-Farm Mosaic in Central Nepal: Implications for Human–Wildlife Coexistence. American Journal of Primatology, 88(3), e70141. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajp.70141Primary research article first published 23 March 2026. A wild rhesus macaque group was followed for 12 months in a forest–farm mosaic in central Nepal. Cultivated crops accounted for 49.1% of annual feeding records; 41 of 58 available crop species were eaten. Farmers attempted deterrence during 83.1% of crop-feeding events, but these efforts did not reduce feeding duration or damage. Estimated maize damage was 1,647 kg, about 50 kg/ha or 1.5% of yield per hectare.

Image: Muf.noor — rhesus macaque eating maize, photographed in Pakistan on 11 March 2017; Wikimedia Commons; representative image, not an animal from the central Nepal study · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source

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