Punch Monkey melts hearts after rejection and unlikely friendship
In a zoo outside Tokyo, a seven-month-old macaque named Punch has become the focus of an emotional story this week — here the phrase punch monkey appears as an identifying term in coverage. Abandoned by his own mother shortly after birth, Punch was given a stuffed animal by zookeepers and has hardly let it go.
Segment and note to viewers
The broadcast opened with a short appeal: "Your generous monthly contribution— or whatever you can give—will help secure our future. " A notice also accompanied the segment stating that transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy and that they may contain errors. The presenter set up the item as lighter fare: "And now a lighter story to end the week. "
Punch and the stuffed orangutan
Punch, a seven-month-old macaque at Ichikawa City Zoo, was abandoned by his mother shortly after birth. Zookeepers handed Punch a stuffed animal — an orangutan toy, a different species — and he has clung to it ever since. Kosuke Shikano, Zookeeper (through interpreter), said the soft toy "has quite long fur and several easy places to hold, " and that "it looks like a monkey, " so keepers thought that its appearance might help Punch integrate back into the troop later on.
Punch Monkey and the toy
Video captured baby Punch being dragged around like a chew toy by other animals and repeatedly escaping to the comfort of his protector, using the stuffed animal for cover. The visual has prompted an outpouring of affection and sympathy from viewers, described in the broadcast as responses from "the more evolved primates among us. "
Online reaction and crowds
The footage has spread widely online and inspired a hashtag, #HangInTherePunch, which has gone viral. The spectacle has drawn massive crowds to the zoo outside Tokyo, and staff reported a run on the stuffed animal at Ikea as visitors sought similar toys. The coverage noted that Punch also "has plenty of friends" on social platforms where the clips circulate.
Staff and expert comments
Miyu Igarashi, Nurse (through interpreter), described Punch's sudden fame: "He's become such an idol-like figure already, so I hope he stays lively and continues being an idol. " Alison Behie, a primatology expert at Australian National University, cautioned that the toy is not a replacement for a mother. Behie said it "is not by any means a replacement for a mother, and it's not going to give the animal the attachment that it sort of needs in order to develop. But it does give sort of an avenue to retreat to that might in the moment reduce those stress responses a little bit, allowing him to feel a little bit less of that anxiety and stress. " Behie added that the other monkeys' ornery attitude toward Punch tracks with expectations for how a troop might react to an outsider.
As the story has unfolded, keepers continue to monitor Punch's interactions with the stuffed toy and with the troop, while crowds and online attention show no immediate sign of abating.
Closing: A seven-month-old macaque named Punch at Ichikawa City Zoo, abandoned by his mother shortly after birth, has formed an attachment to a stuffed orangutan given by zookeepers; staff and an expert described the toy's calming role even as videos and the hashtag #HangInTherePunch spread and visitors flocked to the zoo.
