Lab monkey missing after escaping during a truck crash in the US

A test monkey is on the loose after escaping during a truck crash, with the public warned to stay away from it.

A test monkey is on the run after a truck carrying 100 apes to a laboratory in the US crashed.

The truck driver, en route to Florida, crashed into a dump truck on Friday outside Danville, Pennsylvania.

Four crab-eating macaques seized the opportunity to escape — and as of Saturday local time, one was still at large, reports NY Post.

“There is still one monkey unaccounted for, but we are asking that no one attempt to look for or capture the animal,” a state trooper public information officer (PIO) wrote on Twitter on Saturday.

“Anyone who sees or locates the monkey is asked not to approach, attempt to catch, or come in contact with the monkey.”

A monkey sits in a tree near Danville, Pennsylvania after a crash of a truck transporting 100 monkeys to a laboratory allowed four of them to escape. Picture: Stefani Reynolds / Pennsylvania State Police Department / AFP

Cynomolgus monkeys are commonly used in biomedical research. Picture: Mladen Antonov / AFP

Cynomolgus monkeys, as the species is also known, can cost more than $10,000, and were used as test subjects for the development of the Covid-19 vaccine, according to a report.

The intelligent, social primates are also known to use stone tools in the wild.

– With Post wires

This article originally appeared on New York Post and was reproduced with permission.