Zoo visitors warned against eye contact

13 April 2007

BRUSSELS – There was already a "Do not feed" sign up at the zoo, but now the Antwerp Zoo has added a "Do not make eye-contact" sign. Anyone visiting the apes at the zoo is warned not to hold the animals’ gaze.

"If our apes hold eye contact, then look away for a bit or take a step back," the sign reads. Chimpanzees and other apes that have a lot of contact with visitors apparently tend to isolate themselves from their ape companions in the course of time.

Subject: Belgian news