A troop of 30 monkeys from Gibraltar have been flown 1,609km to set up home in Scotland.

The wild Barbary macaques arrived at Blair Drummond Safari Park near Stirling following a deal with the Gibraltar government to reduce the territory's monkey population.

Ministers said exporting the macaques was preferred to culling the animals, whose rise in numbers has been causing problems for local residents.

The monkeys, aged between six months and 20, were flown to Gatwick Airport before completing their journey by land.

Their new home is a "luxury" heated house and a 2.5-acre enclosure with a swimming pool and trees to climb in.

From March next year visitors will be able to see the macaques in a new drive-through section of the park.

Animal collection manager Sheila Walker said: "It has taken over a year of planning and organising the transfer of these macaques and we cannot believe it's finally happening.

"We are all very excited about having a new species in the park and another exhibit for our visitors.

"Team leader Craig has spent some time in Gibraltar with the ape management team and is fully prepared for all the mischievous antics the macaques will be getting up to."

Gibraltar environment minister John Cortes said the transfer was the first large-scale export of macaques since 1990.

The group of monkeys, which includes three babies, were known as the "Middle Hill Troop" and lived between the top of Gibraltar rock and the town, where they had been causing problems for residents.

Craig Holmes, head of the macaque section at Blair Drummond Safari Park, said: "They had been moving down into the town and they're not stupid, they're clever, they know that there's food down there. People leave bins out and tourists feed them as well.

"They were just working their way down and they were causing problems for the local people, making a mess in their gardens, ripping open their bags to get to the food. So they're reducing the numbers to try and slowly move them out of the town and encourage them back up on to Gibraltar rock."

Mr Holmes said: "They seem to have settled in really well. They are grooming each other, they are all foraging around for food, drinking, so they all seem quite happy considering they've had a long journey."

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