Launceston macaque troop’s expensive upkeep

Turns out keeping a troop of Japanese macaques can be quite expensive and the bill has been tallied by the local council.

A troop of Japanese macaques that have been living in the Australian city park home for four decades will be prevented from reproducing due to concerns of disease and inbreeding. Picture: City of Launceston

Launceston’s iconic monkey enclosure has long been a fascinating stop for tourists, which has cost ratepayers hundreds of thousands of dollars.

In December, the City of Launceston council voted to sterilise the monkeys.

Without breeding, the City Park’s Japanese macaque troop will die out over the next 20 years.

However, the council revealed the yearly upkeep of the macaque monkeys has been between $150 to $160,000 a year.

Should the macaques live another 20 years, this will cost ratepayers at least $3 million.

This covers the day-to-day care of the macaques such as employee costs, food and general maintenance of the enclosure.

The macaque are infected with a common strain of herpes for the animal, which can be fatal to humans.

One person found that out the hard way back in 2022.

An intruder entered the enclosure to scoop coins from the pond, only to be exposed to the Herpes b virus after breaking in.

An attempt was made in 2000 to introduce more animals to stop the herpes spread as well as inbreeding which failed, leading to the 2024 decision to sterilise the troop and ultimately let them die out.

The animals were a gift from Launceston’s Sister City, Ikeda in Japan back in 1981.