A Baby Macaque’s Rough Morning With a Strict Monkey Mom

A baby macaque cries out with its mouth wide open while its mother pins one small leg down and grooms through its fur, refusing to let go despite the fussing. This footage, shot in the field by Top Macaques, follows a mother and her infant through a morning that swings between tenderness and frustration.

Macaques are small monkeys found across parts of Asia, often living in troops near temples, roadsides, or forest edges. The animals in this footage move around on a dirt path and open ground scattered with dry leaves and bits of fruit peel, with a grassy patch appearing later in the video.

What happens in the video

Early on, the mother is seen walking on all fours along a gravel path while carrying her infant tucked beneath her body, the baby’s small limbs just visible against her stomach. She’s joined by another adult macaque sitting nearby.

Later, she sits down and pulls the baby close for a grooming session. The infant, still pink-faced and clearly very young, resists — twisting, crying, and reaching out with its hands as she holds its leg firmly in place. It’s the kind of scene that looks rough to a human eye, even though grooming is a normal part of how mother macaques care for and bond with their young.

Does the baby get some freedom?

By a later point in the video, the baby is shown sitting upright on its own in a patch of green grass, just a few feet from its mother, who watches from close by. The infant is small enough to fit in a person’s cupped hands, giving a sense of just how young it still is.

The footage doesn’t explain what happens between these moments, but it offers a candid look at the push and pull between a demanding mother and a baby who clearly has a mind of her own.