Wild macaques are seen in a cornfield near a village in Zhangcunping township, Yichang, Central China's Hubei Province, in footage filmed by local residents and included in a report by The Beijing News. Photo: Screenshot from video in a report by The Beijing News

A troop of wild macaques recently came down from the wooded mountains and entered cornfields in Zhangcunping township, Yichang, Central China's Hubei Province, where they were seen moving among the crops and feeding on corn, according to a report by The Beijing News on Tuesday.

Videos posted online by local residents showed the macaques roaming through the fields, darting between rows of corn and lingering among the crops.

The Zhangcunping township authority said on August 18 that the animals seen in the fields were wild macaques that normally live in the nearby mountains. Local village officials are now assessing the extent of the crop damage caused by the animals.

A township official said it is relatively rare for the macaques to venture so close to residential areas. No injuries have been reported in connection with the incident.

According to the report, farmers whose cornfields were damaged may be eligible for compensation if their crops are covered by insurance.

Local village authorities and police are also expected to work together to drive the macaques away from the area and prevent them from continuing to enter nearby farmland, the report said.

Global Times