Monkey Through The Looking Glass

Two of the three Vervet Monkeys I take care of are absolutely fascinated by mirrors.

Here Stoffel challenges her reflection - she's been fighting with herself for over 20 years now. Despite the futility of the exercise, if I'm around, she cannot pass a mirror without posturing; raising her eyebrows, approaching her image and chattering in anger.

I have no idea what goes on in her head, I can only speculate that it's her uncontrollable jealousy - she gets insanely uptight if any female, human or other, approaches me.


This is Tumbili peering at her reflection in the camera lens - she's cuddling a stuffless stuffed toy.

She has a strong maternal instinct but I can't allow her to mate because that would just perpetuate the 'monkeys in captivity' thing ... Primates should be left in the wild, that's where they belong.


Tumbili using her new porridge bowl as a mirror.

I've given her plastic-framed cosmetic mirrors in the past but she destroys them within a few hours.

She seems to prefer tiny mirror shards, manipulating them to see inside this wonderland which she can't enter - it's too funny to see her turn her back on me, mirror in hand, and watch as I approach with her food.


Lucky shows no interest in mirrors. She is very difficult to photograph - as soon as I point a camera at her she ducks and hides.

She distrusts humans in general and it is only recently that she's begun to approach me and cautiously take her favorite snacks from my hand.

Lucky was found trapped on a barbed-wire fence. She had a dog collar around her waist attached to a short piece of rope which had become entangled in the fence.

She was in terrible condition, her teeth had been knocked out, her mouth deformed and she was full of scars, with a particularly nasty wound around her waist from the dog collar - she had obviously escaped from her tormentors when her restraining rope broke ... hence the name 'Lucky'.


A fur-less monkey takes a photo of his reflection in a window.

This particular specimen generally ignores mirrors but, at times, is obliged to look himself in the eye when he shaves.


A great shot of Stoffel taken by my daughter Nadine. Notice that, because Stoffel only has one arm, she's using her foot to hold the mirror.

Like Tumbili, she spends ages manipulating the mirror to peek into every corner of the 'otherworld' - I wonder who is more entertained? ... her, wondering? ... or me, wondering what she's wondering?

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