The Green Monkeys

At Welchman Hall Gully, you can safely watch Green monkeys feed. Situated near the entrance of the gully, they are fed on a platform. In addition, you can see them playing in their natural environment, amongst vines and trees.

From January to July, during the dry season, two troops (families) of approximately 20 each visit the gully every day to snack on bananas, their favourite food. One family feeds in the mornings and the other after 1:00pm, however, sometimes you will see smaller troops during the day. These troops are usually very playful. During the rainy season, from July to December, when trees have ample fruit and the monkeys’ feeding patterns become a little less predictable.

Remember: The gully is their home, so they are free to come and go. If you wish to find out when the monkeys may be around at a particular feeding time, you may contact us by phone (246) 438-6671 or email dbranker@caribsurf.com

The Green Monkeys are some of the cutest and sometimes naughtiest wild life found in Barbados.

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After the island was colonized in 1627, the first settlers brought the monkeys from West Africa to Barbados as their pets, but pets they are not, as they can destroy some crops, especially fruits. They are therefore considered to be pests by farmers and the government offers a bounty on their tails.

Unfortunately there are several instances of monkeys being ill-treated and exploited around the island.

There are individuals who travel around Barbados with baby Green Monkeys charging a fee for a photo of the animals. Others keep baby Green Monkeys by their craft stall to attract visitors and others cage them for sale. 

On the surface, these activities may appear to be relatively benign, however the facts are rather less attractive since the mothers are killed for their young and as the baby monkeys grow older, they are discarded and   replaced with younger ones.  The older ones are either killed or released, where they will eventually be killed as outcasts by other monkeys.

Note: Please, refuse to support this practice, do not take photos of the monkeys in these circumstances or give money to vendors for the care of these monkeys at any time. It is a cruel practice which should be stopped. For more information, please contact the RSPCA at (246) 426 3077.