Mother goosebumps
Mexico is so hot that vulnerable howler monkeys fall dead from trees.
Brutal and persistent heat waves are sweeping across Mexico and have tragically claimed more than 20 confirmed lives since March. And now it seems that animals are not immune to the dangerous weather either: Reuters reports that at least 83 howler monkeys have died in the Mexican state of Tabasco due to staggering – and unnatural – high temperatures, even falling from trees due to heat stroke and dehydration.
“It’s because the heat is so strong,” Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Mexican president and Tabasco resident, told reporters. Reuters when asked about monkey deaths. “I have been visiting the United States for a long time and have never felt it like I do now.”
Temperatures in the region show no signs of slowing down and are expected to exceed a staggering 113 degrees Fahrenheit this week. (The typical May temperature for Tabasco is below 100 degrees Fahrenheit.)
“They fell like apples from trees,” said Tabasco-based wildlife biologist Gilberto Pozo The Associated press, who recalled counting 83 dead and dying monkeys as they lay on the ground. “They were in a state of severe dehydration and died within minutes.”
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Five lucky monkeys have reportedly been rescued and are recovering under the care of local veterinarian Sergio Valenzuela.
“They arrived in critical condition, with dehydration and fever,” said Valenzuela, who explained that he revived the animals with ice and IVs. AP. ‘They were as limp as rags. It was heat stroke.’
Howler monkeys are known for their loud roars and are critical to the Tabascan ecosystem. In a sense, the herbivorous primates are like natural gardeners, working to both prune and replenish the forest as they pick their way through the leaves, branches and seed-filled fruits of regional trees and plants. As Pozo said APHowever, these important creatures suffer not only from the high temperatures that cause the drought, but also from the loss of habitat and food sources due to deforestation and forest fires.
In other words, the region’s howler monkeys were already suffering from a lack of food, water and shelter for the extreme heat that has established itself is being buffeted on several intersecting fronts. And as Pozo said APtheir grisly fate could be a warning of grim human-induced ecological events to come.
“This is a sentinel species,” Pozo told the newspaper AP. “It tells us something about what’s happening with climate change.”
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