An Indian airport has devised a highly creative – and reportedly effective – method to keep vexatious langurs off their runway: have an employee dress up as a bear and scare them off.
An extremely busy international airport in India’s western Ahmedabad city deployed the unorthodox tactic after struggling to prevent langurs from swarming the grounds of the air hub – and creating a potential safety hazard for passengers. The idea was reportedly hatched after the airport’s management learned that langurs are terrified of bears. The airport already has a team dedicated to chasing off birds and wildlife, so using a bear costume to increase results was perhaps a logical – and more fun – decision.
A video of the strategy in action shows an airport employee donning a bear suit (although he looks more like a ‘Star Wars’ Wookie) as he runs across a field, and a group of obnoxious little monkeys flee in fear.
Airport Director Manoj Gangal told Indian media that the policy has been a “good and successful experiment.”
Like this story? Share it with a friend!