For the past six months I've witnessed relatively few monkey-initiated aggressive actions towards park visitors. However, the onset of the hot & dry season in Jakarta seems to coincide with a marked uptick in aggressive behavior.
Almost all of the incidents of charging, chasing and grabbing are centered around foods. Still, a few outlier aggressive moments stem from a more complicated social response to stimuli.
Juvenile males, who attempt to mate with juvenile/sub adult females, are observed taking a small "gang" of young adults and juveniles to roam further afield from the main troop.
My theory is that, while attempting matting outside of hierarchy, the young males are more anxious and nervous. The "on edge" feelings make them more aggressive and likely fuel their need to look "strong and ferocious" in front of potential (albeit clandestine) mates.
These roving juvenile gangs are short lived gatherings and if the main body of the troop - especially Troop Leader Mal - are within visual proximity, the rogue band disperses fairly quickly.
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