The arrogance of scientific certainty — Cape Town’s baboons deserve ethics, not imprisonment

Daily Maverick · 2026-10-15T05:30:00.000Z · Science

Justin O’Riain may know a great deal about baboon behaviour, but ecological expertise does not confer moral authority to decide that wild animals must surrender their freedom. The proposed captivity of two Cape Peninsula baboon troops exposes a deeper failure in conservation: the persistent refusal to recognise that science alone cannot answer fundamentally ethical questions.

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