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Love Islanders have been warned about dangerous troops of Baboons who have zoned in on the area around the mansion where the stars are seeking sex and romance.
The alert comes after a British couple’s car was badly damaged yesterday by monkeys and nearly written off around the lush mountains and vineyards, an hour from Cape Town where the ITV series is being filmed.
Road signs warning about ‘wild baboons’ have been erected along the Western Cape roads leading to the luxury Ludus Magnus estate in Franschhoek’s Millionaire’s Row where the stars of this year’s show are staying.
The stars have been advised to be careful when handling food in the open areas or the heated swimming pool as Baboons can easily smell food and hone in.
Two British tourists were cornered by a troop near a hotel close to the Love Island mansion after one of them walked towards their hire car with a banana in her hand.
Love Islanders have been warned about dangerous troops of Baboons who have zoned in on the area around the mansion where the stars are seeking sex and romance
An Alpha-male baboon leapt from a wall towards the tourist from London, who asked not to be named.
She told Mail Online: ‘My partner was taking pictures of them as they looked calm and a bit bored.
‘But when I walked out one of the bigger baboons snarled and showed it teeth. It began to leap towards me and as it jumped from the wall which was about 15 feet high, he used our car as a springboard and bounced towards me.
‘I threw the banana to make him change direction as he had his mouth open and scared the life out of me. He kind of roared as he went through the air.
‘There was a loud bang when he landed on the car and he thankfully ignored me and headed for the banana which he unpeeled and gobbled down.
‘The hotel staff told me I was lucky because his claws could have injured me and I was smart to throw the fruit and show my empty hands.
‘But the car looks like it may have to be written off as the roof is badly dented and the internal lights and switches smashed off by the Baboon’s weight. It is going to cost several thousands of pounds to repair. But luckily my partner had taken out full insurance.’
A Love Island source said: ‘All roads to the mansion are sealed off by security guards in their white trucks.
An Alpha-male baboon leapt from a wall towards the tourist from London
‘But you can’t stop these wild animals as they are hungry, and they are attracted to food being carried by humans.
The stars have been advised to be careful when handling food in the open areas or the heated swimming pool as Baboons can easily smell food and hone in
‘We have told the Love Islanders to be very careful not to wave food around and to be on the alert in case troops of baboons suddenly appear feeling decidedly hungry.
‘We are not particularly worried that the stars will be injured, but we don’t want any unpleasant scenes.
‘They have come from Britain and won’t be used to such numbers of monkeys running in the wild and suddenly appearing from nowhere. They have been properly briefed on how to be safe.
‘There is a catering venue in the villa’s grounds and the chefs are very smart in keeping an eye on the food as well as an eye out for any monkey invaders. Our security guard the BBQ too.’
A Franschhoek park ranger said: ‘Yahh. These creatures are a problem. But we don’t want to go round shooting them although they are wild and dangerous. Visitors to the area have been injured in the past by the baboons.
Road signs warning about ‘wild baboons’ have been erected along the Western Cape roads leading to the luxury Ludus Magnus estate in Franschhoek’s Millionaire’s Row
‘We also ask people to not to feed them. I recall an idiot throwing fruit into the road so he could tempt the baboons from the hills. This was a terrible thing to do as we have had cases of baboons being killed by cars on the roads.
‘I hadn’t heard about these people from Love Island filming here. It is one of the most beautiful areas in the world, so I can see why they have come here.
‘But they must be extremely careful to lock their doors and windows and not flash food around. Baboons are dangers animals who are always hungry.’
The rangers and forestry officials have implanted trackers on alpha baboons to help keep tabs on where troops are roaming, but they breed regularly increasing their numbers.’
Despite the dangers, it is illegal to harm or shoot a baboon in the area around Love Island and its man-made beach.
But many succumb to electric fences, cars, dogs and people shooting them with pellet guns with conservationists claiming baboons in the area could be extinct in a decade.
Some residents have been accused of poisoning baboons or hunting them to prevent them searching for food and stop them breaking into cars and houses and stealing food directly from people.
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