Baboons or bureaucracy? Uproar over Cape Peninsula’s suggested plan to remove 121 Baboons
A review process is under way for the proposed removal of several baboon troops from the Cape Peninsula, prompting public concern and calls for further consultation.
Image: Barry Wood
A major conservation controversy is brewing in the Western Cape after authorities announced plans to remove five baboon groups from the Cape Peninsula—representing approximately a quarter of the region’s managed baboon population.
The proposal was disclosed following the latest meeting of the Cape Peninsula Baboon Management Joint Task Team (CPBMJTT), a multi-agency task force comprising SANParks, CapeNature, and the City of Cape Town. The Cape Peninsula Baboon Advisory Group (CPBAG), a civic advisory body of residents' associations and conservation organisations, was also in attendance.
The affected groups and their most recent recorded numbers from June 2024 are:
- Waterfall troop, Simon’s Town – 42 baboons
- Seaforth troop, Simon’s Town – 16 baboons
- CT1 troop, Constantia – 41 baboons
- CT2 troop, Constantia – 18 baboons
- Da Gama “Creamies”, Glencairn – 4 baboons
Together, the groups account for 121 baboons out of an estimated 490 living on the Peninsula.
According to the CPBMJTT, the proposal stems from a combination of factors: the troops’ limited access to natural habitat, poor welfare conditions, and a significant increase in conflict with residents. In many cases, the baboons are heavily urbanised, injured by human interaction, or increasingly dependent on unnatural food sources.
In some areas, rangers have had little success keeping the animals out of residential zones.
While the decision has not been finalised, the Cape Peninsula Civil Conservation (CPCC) called the proposals “deeply shocking”, despite having anticipated such a move.
“To remove—most likely by killing—a quarter of the Cape Peninsula's managed baboon population raises serious ethical dilemmas,” said CPCC chairperson Lynda Silk. “Our community and members are reeling at this news.”
During the CPBAG meeting it was reportedly said that humane killing may result in the “best outcomes in terms of ethics and welfare.”
Other options being considered include translocation to a sanctuary or rewilding elsewhere. Final decisions are due after expert review, with feedback from CPBAG expected by mid-June.
The Creamies, referred to as the Da Gama 4, are up for removal.
Image: Debra Coull
Further controversy surrounds a proposed shortening of the tolerance period for dispersing males, who may be euthanised if they fail to integrate into existing troops quickly. A contraception trial is also under consideration for northern subpopulations, though such programmes have not previously been used in wild baboon populations and remain socially contentious.
The CPCC urged residents and stakeholders to investigate, question, and give feedback.
According to the CPBMJTT, the targeted troops face ongoing welfare risks due to limited access to natural habitat and increasing reliance on urban areas. The Seaforth troop is also said to pose a threat to the endangered African Penguin colony at Boulders Beach.
Meanwhile, the Cape Baboon Partnership, which took over field operations in March, continues managing ranger teams, the Baboon Hotline, and community liaison.
Baboon-proof bins are expected to be rolled out by January 2026.
For Jenni Trethowan of Baboon Matters, a long-time advocate for coexistence, the excuse as to why it's taken so long to have the bins rolled out is inexcusable.
She criticised the authorities’ failure to implement basic mitigation measures.
“After 26 years, there are still no baboon-proof bins. The new service provider says they ‘underestimated how strong baboons are’—it’s simply inexcusable,” she said.
Trethowan added: “The irony is that baboons are blamed for being ‘over-habituated’, yet they’re being fed daily by unsecured waste from bins, businesses, and even the Navy.”
She called the plan a return to outdated, reactive management. “We’ve gone from advocating coexistence to facing mass removal. Talk of euthanasia isn’t humane—it’s calculated killing to conceal failure. This is not the baboons’ failure. It’s a failure of policy and ethics.”
Trethowan also questioned why proposed solutions like food provisioning and enriched mountain zones have been ignored. “We’ve suggested planting food forests and installing water points to attract baboons back to natural areas. None of it has been tried.”
Weekend Argus