Monkeys of Gibraltar are relishing junk food followed by dirt because of humans

The monkeys of Gibraltar are eating dirt because of being fed all kinds of junk food by humans. A study has found that the animals have shaped their lives around the tourists who flock to the area and routinely give them things that are making them sick. So to soothe their stomachs, the monkeys are turning to dirt. A team of scientists was tracking the Barbary macaques in Gibraltar when they discovered this eating pattern. The amount of dirt consumed by these monkeys was directly related to the time they spent around humans. Their soil consumption spiked during the holiday season. While the researchers observed the monkeys eating soil, they didn't exactly see a reason for it. However, they believe it is a way to protect their digestive system. The one hint they got was from a group of isolated monkeys, far away from the tourists, who were not eating soil.

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Monkeys of Gibraltar eating soil for their stomachs

Notably, the monkeys of Gibraltar live in eight groups and are given fruit, vegetables and seeds by local authorities. However, tourists feed them things like chips, chocolates and ice creams, foods not exactly animal-friendly. Dr Sylvain Lemoine, a primate behavioural ecologist at the University of Cambridge, and a senior author of the study, said the animals are possibly turning to dirt to rebalance their gut microbiomes, which are affected by fatty, salty and sugary snacks. “We think that eating this junk food disrupts the composition of the microbiome, and we know that bacteria and minerals in soil can help recompose the microbiome and alleviate the negative effects,” Lemoine said. “We think there’s a protective effect of the soil.” The study was published in Scientific Reports.

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Monkeys ate more junk food during tourist season

Scientists observed between the summer of 2002 and the spring of 2024 that monkeys at the top of the rock, where tourists flock to in large numbers, were twice as likely to eat junk food. These monkeys also consumed the largest amount of dirt. Researchers recorded 44 monkeys eating dirt on 46 occasions, and they mostly did so right after eating ice cream. Talking about their favourite junk foods, Lemoine said, "There’s a lot of ice cream. They love Magnums and Cornettos. What they don’t like very much is sorbet." They also gorged on chocolate bars, crisps, dried pasta, bread, Coca-Cola, orange juice, and M&M’s. During the off-season, their junk food consumption dropped, and they were 40 per cent less likely to eat such items, and more than 30 per cent less likely to eat soil.

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They also had a preference for the type of soil and copied each other. Terra rossa, or red clay, found across Gibraltar, was the favourite of the majority of monkeys, while the Ape’s Den troop, near the lower western slopes, favours tar-clogged soil from potholes in asphalt roads.