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There is a famous claim that says the way to trap monkeys is by placing a staked container with a hole cut into it just wide enough for a monkey to stick its empty hand into.

The container is baited with a banana or something attractive to the monkey. The monkey reaches for bait and then, since it will not release the bait, it cannot pull its hand out of the trap. It is then captured. I

Is it effective to trap animals this way?

Important note (-; (there is a Simpsons episode where Homer exhibits this behavior. Homer tries to get a free soda by reaching up into the soda machine and gets his hand on the can and it gets stuck until they realize the reason he is stuck is because he wont let go of the can.)

Sam I Am
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Napoleonothecake
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  • Sorry, too hasty close vote, not a dupe – Suma Feb 02 '12 at 07:21
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    No evidence, but evolution wouldn't have allowed this behaviour to pass on through monkey generations as food is often in tight spots. I rank this up there with "do penguins fall over when low flying planes pass over" – Rory Alsop Feb 02 '12 at 11:55
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    @RoryAlsop - it was bug in the Intelligent Design \*\*runs and hides** – user5341 Feb 02 '12 at 17:10
  • I think, but am not sure, that I have seen such a trick in the film (wich isn't at all documentary or a valid source) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Gods_Must_Be_Crazy . The claim of Rory is of course nothing than claim. Maybe a banana is just too big to give it up. – user unknown Feb 03 '12 at 00:21
  • If you google for `monkey trap banana`, you find zillions of claims, so it is a popular belief, maybe similar to the frog in the boiling water. Meanwhile I found a page which says, it is a urban legend, but without further details. Be warned, lang=de http://unendliches.net/german/index.htm?dummheit.htm . They mention a film as one source of the legend too, but say it was `Die Wüste lebt` (maybe: The desert lives) and `R. Pirsigs, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance`. – user unknown Feb 03 '12 at 00:50
  • I am still trying to figure out why two people voted to close? – Napoleonothecake Feb 03 '12 at 01:23
  • Suma told you: Too fast, assuming it was a duplicate. – user unknown Feb 03 '12 at 03:27
  • yeah i am talking about he other – Napoleonothecake Feb 03 '12 at 05:48
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    This video seems legit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHdJVzYBBOU&feature=youtube_gdata_player – Sklivvz Feb 03 '12 at 13:07
  • Skliwz great find I wonder if you can find the tribe that does it(if they do) anyone read any of Jane Godall books if someone speaks about it its got to be her – Napoleonothecake Feb 03 '12 at 19:22
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    Well I don't know about monkeys, but I remember when I was little a neighboring house had goat kids. They could easily poke their heads through the gaps in the fence to eat the snacks I'd feed them, but because the horns face backwards they had a very tough time pulling their heads back out - we had to help them when we'd leave. – Superbest Mar 30 '12 at 16:38
  • [This video](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHdJVzYBBOU&feature=youtube_gdata_player) mentioned by Sklivvz in the comments seems legitimate indeed. But if the story were indeed true, we should have thousands of them in the public domain given the prevalence of the claim, so I'm confident that it's not true. I think the story lives on because it's a convenient analogy that serves as evidence in an argument, e.g. "humans have a hard time letting go, and we do that because other animals do too." – miguelmorin Dec 16 '20 at 11:40
  • I don't get the upvotes. Do people find this funny because OP is trolling? – dan-klasson Dec 18 '20 at 20:41
  • @Sklivvz I don't find it convincing. First, it very much looks like something is holding the hand inside. Second, as soon as the hunter touches the monkey, but not when he is seen approaching, the hand is freed instantly. Third, the subsequent part about finding water is quite obviously edited. – მამუკა ჯიბლაძე Aug 26 '21 at 12:18

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