Treetop Walk.

More jungle.

More macaques.

A huge bat

and a monitor lizard - at least 4 feet long, well over half of which was tail.

I crouched by the track for about 10 minutes to watch the monitor sunbathing and check out blood red dragonflies that were flitting about. At least a dozen people walked by but only one glanced down to see what I was looking at and noticed the monitor too. It's tail just seems to go on and on....a photo that gets the whole lizard in has the body bit just way too small to enjoy. It was yellowish underneath and had bright yellow pads on its feet.

No snakes (that I saw).

I pick up rubbish when I see it on the track so was wandering along clutching a green shiney snack bar wrapper of some kind when a woman walking toward me kind of lept aside just as I was ambushed from behind by a mid-sized macaque. It launched from a bush, lept off my calf and grabbed the hand carrying the garbage.

I yelped, of course I did, it was so unexpected, but the wee soft hands and feet did no damage at all and the macaque didn't score the prize of an empty wrapper. I folded the garbage tightly and hid it inside my fist. The macaque glared accusingly, then pleaded a little before giving up and going in search of more wholesome repast (I hope).

Everywhere are signs advising humans to keep food hidden in their bags. Don't carry plastic bags (with or without food) as the macaques associate plastic carry bags with food/picnic. There is a $1000 fine for feeding the macaques and, sensibly, explanations that the objective is to avoid encouraging 'aggressive' behaviour among the macaques.

I wouldn't call the ambush on me aggressive, but it was bold and opportunistic and illustrated well how these clever wee guys have worked out what junk food comes wrapped in.

Despite the many warnings, it probably comes as no surprise that there are idiots among  humans who pull out their snack bars and bananas just as they arrive at the ranger station (where macaques hang out and where most of the signs are - signs in at least 4 languages AND pictograms by the way) and then get all ansty when macaques take too much interest in their food.

One guy paused at a shelter where I was watching a macaque eating wild *chempedak, commented "oh look a monkey" and proceeded to pull a banana out of his bag. When the macaque began to show a little interest in the human stuffing his face, said human started swinging his backpack around like a battle axe.

Aggressive behaviour indeed. 

Idiot.

Even worse the woman of possibly middle years who, standing right beside the warning sign, pulled out her shiny wrapped snack bar in front of two 'monkeys' then screamed and screamed as they leapt up to try and snatch it. She threw the snack which was swooped on and carried off by the triumphant macaques, and then she proceeded to wail like a two year old.  Waaaah Waaaah Waaaah.... The histrionics were mind-blowing.

I love the macaques. I despair of some humans.

*Chempedak is related to jackfruit and breadfruit. Apparently it has been discovered that rather than nectar, the tree's flowers offer fungus as a prize for pollination (by fungus gnats). This is wild chempedak: