Monkey escapes after 'family row'

Monkey escaped from enclosure at Belfast Zoo

A monkey which escaped from Belfast Zoo after an "argument" with his dad is still on the loose.

Police officers have joined staff in the search for the Colobus monkey which escaped from its enclosure on Sunday night.

A man living near the zoo raised the alarm after spotting the two feet tall, black and white animal in his garden shortly after 2200 BST.

The public is urged not to approach the monkey but to contact the authorities.

Johnny Owens, the owner of the house where the monkey was spotted, said he could not believe what he was seeing.

"I was sitting there last night watching television and just happened to look out the window and saw this beautiful black and white monkey going up and down the gazebo and I couldn't believe my eyes," Mr Owens said.

"I phoned my nieces and they stayed for a couple of hours and fed it."

He said he contacted the police, who notified the zoo.

"They in turn said it had settled down nicely for the night and they'd start their search in the morning."

Shy

Mark Challis, the zoo's acting manager, said he was hopeful the young male monkey will be returned safely to his enclosure.

It appeared the monkey had "a set-to with his dad" and then fled the enclosure, he said.

"He's out of his normal environment, he's likely to want to hide. They are a relatively shy, nervous species.

"They come from the slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro, so they are quite a tough species of monkey. The cool air nights shouldn't bother them too much," Mr Challis added.

"We have a very capable and trained escape team in the zoo. We wouldn't want people to approach him too closely, but if they can keep an eye on him and see what he's up to that would be ideal."

A red panda escaped from the zoo in December 2002.