monkeys on beach

Monkey business at the beach.

Escape to Monkey Island, deep in the tropical forests of Sri Lanka, where troops of toque macaques, tufted grey langurs, and purple-faced leaf monkeys have made their home among the crumbling ruins of ancient temples. In this verdant jungle, abundant fruit provides ample feasts for these foragers, but even in primate paradise, trouble awaits. Follow these charismatic monkeys as they deal with unpredictable weather and struggle to raise their young in an environment where hidden forest dangers lurk around every corner.

In the hot summer, a group of little monkeys jumped up and down tirelessly on several trees on the mountain, having a great time. Wearing a straw hat on his head and shoulders, and with two wine gourds hanging on his chest, the old man struggled up from the bottom of the mountain. When he saw a large shade of trees, he stopped to rest and fell asleep after a while. The little monkeys sized up the old man, and became interested in the straw hat and wine gourd he threw on the ground.

On the Rock of Gibraltar, a battle is being waged between man and monkey. Barbary macaques have called this place home for centuries, surviving both the Moors and Spaniards and coexisting with the British since the 1700s. Abandoning the gorgeous Mediterranean view is just not a part of their plan. Increasingly though, the macaques are climbing down into town and disturbing the peace as they romp along rooftops in this peculiar British outpost. Recent efforts to keep them in line have involved only feeble peashooters, but Her Majesty’s next coordinated moves might actually make a dent. With a hint of humor, this quiet and beautifully photographed observational film captures the macaques in everyday acts of rebellion and asks us to consider the arbitrary nature of our own territorial tendencies.

Peanut, Hero and Tarzan are three cheeky monkeys. They live on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi with the rest of their gang of crested black macaques. These very special primates are found nowhere else in the world. Twenty-five years ago, wildlife cameraman Colin Stafford-Johnson visited Sulawesi for the first time and now he has returned. Fascinated by the monkeys, Colin hopes to reveal their sometimes violent, often playful and, just like our own, highly political world. What he discovers leads him on a much bigger journey than he was ever expecting.

Roughly 20 miles off the coast of west Africa, sits a volcanic relic now completely blanketed in equatorial rainforest: the island of Bioko. It's home to some very rare species, including the drill -- one of the most endangered primates in the world. Join us on a jungle expedition as we uncover the secret life of these reclusive primates and track down the seasonal migration of the goby -- a plucky fish battling its way upriver past strong currents, deadly predators, and even a 100-foot waterfall, to reach the spawning grounds of its youth.

Breaking and entering, gang fights-it's not the lifestyle you would imagine inside the posh Mount Edgecombe Estate in Durban, South Africa. But for our primate cousins, the vervet monkey, just trying to protect their turf is all in a day's work. This group of mischievous vervet monkeys bring action and drama to every street corner. Over the course of a year, two rival gangs, the Pani Troop and the Sugar Cane Gang, will vie for prime real estate. See who will win.