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Police receive a prank 911 call. The suspect? An adorable baby monkey.

Monkey business at its finest.

monkey prank 911 call, 911 call monkey, monkey calls 911
Photo by Tj Kolesnik on Unsplash

No monkeys were harmed in the making of this story. But one is in a timeout.

Prank calls are a popular way to monkey around, but this story takes it to a whole new level.

The San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call that was immediately disconnected. According to a social media post, dispatchers traced the mysterious call back to the offices of a local zoo nearby. However no one at the zoo made the call.

Make that no person.

Deputies soon realized the lawbreaker behind the call was Route—a baby capuchin with two opposable thumbs and quite possibly a mark on her permanent record.


“Capuchin monkeys are so smart,” Paso Robles' Zoo To You owner Lisa Jackson told AP News, noting that capuchins are tool enthusiasts.



“She sees me all the time texting and playing with the phone. So I think that's pretty much what she did.”

You heard it folks—this was a textbook case of monkey see, monkey do.

Baby Route had picked up a cellphone found from inside a golf cart that traveled around the zoo’s 40 acres and started pushing buttons. That button combo just so happened to be for emergencies only. Whoops.

“Our Deputies have seen their fair share of ‘monkey business’ in the County. But nothing quite like this,” the Sheriff’s office wrote.

They also posted adorable photos of the guilty party.

Route’s antics are certainly hilarious and rival that of “Curious George,” but they also prove why trying to own a capuchin (or any monkey, for that matter) isn’t the best idea.

According to The Spruce Pets, capuchins rarely get enough stimulation and activity when raised by humans, leading to destructive behavior.

Plus it can be nearly impossible to mimic a natural environment and diet. Do you really have the time and resources to make your own mini jungle and serve mixed fruits and vegetables mixed with baby food … twice a day?

Oh yeah, and it’s illegal to own one in 35 out of 50 states. So there’s that.

Basically, even though movies and television shows make owning a monkey seem like a dream … maybe reconsider.

monkeys for pets

don't trust everything you see on the telly

Giphy

As Zoo to You wrote on its Facebook page, “let this serve as an educational lesson that monkeys are NOT animals that should be kept as pets! They're so inquisitive you never know what might happen!”

Still, we can admire these super-smart monkeys and their odd quirks from afar. For example, you know how we humans might try to form bonds through a well-meaning high five or fist bump? Capuchins prefer instead to poke each other’s eyeballs. How fun.

They also wash their hands and feet with pee, and scientists still aren’t sure exactly why. Comfort? Pleasure? A good tree grip? The world may never know.

Lastly, they very well may be nature’s radical feminists. Female capuchins have been known to throw rocks at their potential male mates.

One thing’s for sure—capuchins might be born for mischief, but it’s never less than highly entertaining.

And now for the real question: How will Route cause chaos next? Another fake 911 call? Will she accidentally order a delivery of 70 pizzas? Guess we’ll have to stay tuned.

Planet

Easy (and free!) ways to save the ocean

The ocean is the heart of our planet. It needs our help to be healthy.

Ocean Wise

Volunteers at a local shoreline cleanup

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The ocean covers over 71% of the Earth’s surface and serves as our planet’s heart. Ocean currents circulate vital heat, moisture, and nutrients around the globe to influence and regulate our climate, similar to the human circulatory system. Cool, right?

Our ocean systems provide us with everything from fresh oxygen to fresh food. We need it to survive and thrive—and when the ocean struggles to function healthfully, the whole world is affected.

Pollution, overfishing, and climate change are the three biggest challenges preventing the ocean from doing its job, and it needs our help now more than ever. Humans created the problem; now humans are responsible for solving it.

#BeOceanWise is a global rallying cry to do what you can for the ocean, because we need the ocean and the ocean needs us. If you’re wondering how—or if—you can make a difference, the answer is a resounding YES. There are a myriad of ways you can help, even if you don’t live near a body of water. For example, you can focus on reducing the amount of plastic you purchase for yourself or your family.

Another easy way to help clean up our oceans is to be aware of what’s known as the “dirty dozen.” Every year, scientists release an updated list of the most-found litter scattered along shorelines. The biggest culprit? Single-use beverage and food items such as foam cups, straws, bottle caps, and cigarette butts. If you can’t cut single-use plastic out of your life completely, we understand. Just make sure to correctly recycle plastic when you are finished using it. A staggering 3 million tons of plastic ends up in our oceans annually. Imagine the difference we could make if everyone recycled!

The 2022 "Dirty Dozen" ListOcean Wise

If you live near a shoreline, help clean it up! Organize or join an effort to take action and make a positive impact in your community alongside your friends, family, or colleagues. You can also tag @oceanwise on social if you spot a beach that needs some love. The location will be added to Ocean Wise’s system so you can submit data on the litter found during future Shoreline Cleanups. This data helps Ocean Wise work with businesses and governments to stop plastic pollution at its source. In Canada, Ocean Wise data helped inform a federal ban on unnecessary single-use plastics. Small but important actions like these greatly help reduce the litter that ends up in our ocean.

Ocean Wise, a conservation organization on a mission to restore and protect our oceans, is focused on empowering and educating everyone from individuals to governments on how to protect our waters. They are making conservation happen through five big initiatives: monitoring and protecting whales, fighting climate change and restoring biodiversity, innovating for a plastic-free ocean, protecting and restoring fish stocks, and finally, educating and empowering youth. The non-profit believes that in order to rebuild a resilient and vibrant ocean within the next ten years, everyone needs to take action.

Become an Ocean Wise ally and share your knowledge with others. The more people who know how badly the ocean needs our help, the better! Now is a great time to commit to being a part of something bigger and get our oceans healthy again.

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The hobby has caught the attention of law enforcement and government agencies because urban waterways are a popular place for criminals to drop weapons and stolen items after committing a crime. In 2019, a magnet fisherman in Michigan pulled up an antique World War I mortar grenade and the bomb squad had to be called out to investigate.


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