FOOD HABIT OF RHESUS MACAQUE IN URBAN AREA: A CASE STUDY OF JIND CITY, HARYANA STATE

Rhesus macaque is a wild animal that adopts urban ecosystems due to rapid urbanization, expansion of agricultural land, deforestation, and encroachment of human activities in forest areas. The food sources and food items of Rhesus macaques are relatively different in urban ecosystems. In this study, an attempt has been made to know from which sources Rhesus macaques get their food in urban areas and what kind of food they get, and an attempt has also been made to know how their food habits in urban areas are different from those in forest areas. This study was conducted in Jind city, Haryana, between July and December 2023. To fulfil the objectives, two methods were used: the first was the scan sampling method with 10 minutes of observation and a 5-minute interval, and the second was the schedule method for people’s perceptions about the food habits of Rhesus macaque. Findings indicate that Rhesus macaque preferred to consume provisioned food (gram, jaggery, bananas, bread, vegetables, fried food, etc.) rather than natural food (leaves, coppals, roots, etc.). Their activity budget shows that they spend 35 percent time resting, 27.81 percent moving, 23.81 percent feeding, and 13.81 percent grooming. In this study, the share of feeding time in the activity budget of Rhesus macaque is relatively less in urban areas compared to forest areas.