Monkeying Around in Israel

By Linda Tancs

At the Ben-Shemen forest near Modi’in is a monkey park containing 250 species of monkeys from locales around the world like Africa, Asia and South America. You’ll find one of the smallest monkeys in the world–the marmoset–here.  Another citizen is the crab-eating macaque, a medium species of monkey found in the tropical and subtropical forests and jungles throughout southeast Asia. The white-ringed eyes of the dusky leaf langur, a native of Thailand, Myanmar and Malaysia, give it the appearance of wearing eyeglasses. Located halfway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, the park provides guided tours every half hour on weekends.