Residents vs. Macaques: How Azumino's "Monkey Chasing Squad" Protects Homes and Farms

Residents vs. Macaques in the Northern Alps

AZUMINO, Japan — In the foothills of Japan’s Northern Alps, residents have organized a determined response to recurring break-ins and crop damage by Japanese macaques. Dressed in bright orange vests, teams ring bells, blow whistles and strike walking sticks against rocks and trees as they move through bamboo and undergrowth to herd the animals back into the mountains.

The Monkey Chasing Squad

Azumino employs roughly 50 paid, part‑time municipal workers known locally as the Monkey Chasing Squad. They use GPS tracking, radios and coordinated teams to locate and steer macaque groups away from villages and farmland. According to squad leader Masaya Miyake, the group's efforts have shifted the animals' patterns: where nearly all macaques in the Ariake district once remained inside town, the city now estimates macaques split their time roughly half in the hills and half in the villages.

From Tourist Attraction to Local Nuisance

Some 90 kilometers (55 miles) to the south, Jigokudani Monkey Park draws more than 200,000 visitors a year who watch the same species bathe in hot springs. Yet for many locals, macaques are a growing nuisance: they break into houses, steal food and damage crops. Japan’s Agriculture Ministry reported that in 2022 wild animals — including macaques — caused 15.6 billion yen (about $100 million) in crop damage, with deer, wild boar and macaques responsible for roughly 70% of that total.

Debate Over Responses: Culling vs. Nonlethal Measures

Calls for culling have grown louder. Azumino City Councilman Yoichi Tsujitani says removing macaques from human-populated areas could take two to three years and defended lethal control as a humane option in some cases.

“A quick, painless death by someone skilled is the last kindness we can offer,” Tsujitani said.

But ecologists and primate researchers caution that culling can be counterproductive. Shigeyuki Izumiyama of Shinshu University says removing whole troops often creates vacuum territory that neighboring groups quickly occupy; smaller surviving groups may push deeper into farmland. Takayo Soma of Kyoto University notes that macaques live about 20 years, so solutions need long‑term planning.

Practical, Nonlethal Strategies

Researchers and local farmers recommend a toolbox of nonlethal measures: clearing vegetation near fields, using GPS collars and antennas to pinpoint groups, installing and maintaining electric fencing, and training dogs to deter incursions. Apple farmer Kazuo Matsuda says electric fencing has protected his orchard but is expensive to keep up. Retired teacher and squad member Shigeru Maruyama and trainer Takahiro Isomoto say well-trained dogs often succeed where people cannot.

Voices from the Community

Some residents combine frustration with wry humor. Retired English professor Michael Johnson, who has lived in Azumino since 2011, says macaques have entered his house multiple times — once leaving a five-hour mess — and has grown skeptical of municipal tactics such as free rocket fireworks and temporary air-gun rentals. Photographer and observer Takumi Matsuda, who documents macaques on Instagram for more than 60,000 followers, urges humane, targeted measures rather than indiscriminate culling.

“We’re simply returning them to their proper habitat,” Miyake said, stressing that village food is more nutritious and attractive than what the animals find in the hills. The conflict highlights a wider issue as human settlements and agriculture press into forested slopes: without careful long-term planning, clashes between people and macaques are likely to continue.