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Take a Monkey to Lunch Day

Animal · Fun · July 21

A playful day about monkeys: how they eat, what they like, and fun ways to enjoy lunch with a monkey in mind, from bananas to a zoo visit.

Take a Monkey to Lunch Day falls on Wednesday, July 21, 2027. That is 267 days away.

Monkeys are the subject here, and lunch is the excuse to think about them. The name sounds like an invitation, but nobody needs to book a table for two primates. The day works better as a reason to pay attention to how monkeys live and eat.

Monkeys are primates, and many species spend much of their lives in trees. Their diets vary a lot. Plenty eat fruit, leaves, seeds and insects, and some are quite choosy about which fruit is ripe. Bananas get most of the credit in cartoons, though a wild monkey's menu is usually broader and less yellow.

Eating is often social for them. Groups forage together, and young monkeys learn what is good to eat by watching older ones. Some species have long tails that help with balance as they move through branches, and a few New World monkeys can grip with their tails like an extra hand.

People mark the day in easy ways. A stuffed monkey shows up at a lunch table, a child packs a fruit-heavy lunch, or a family spends an afternoon at a zoo watching monkeys at feeding time. Picture books and nature documentaries fill in the rest.

Real monkeys belong with other monkeys and with trained keepers, which is why the lunch date stays imaginary. A plate of sliced fruit and a good look at the primate house covers it nicely.

Ways to celebrate

• Pack a lunch built around fruit, nuts and leafy greens.
• Visit a zoo and watch the monkeys during feeding time.
• Read a picture book or watch a documentary about monkeys.
• Bring a stuffed monkey to lunch with a child.
• Learn the difference between monkeys and apes.

Dates

All national days on July 21

Also on July 21

• National Hot Dog Day
• National Junk Food Day
• National Be Someone Day

Categories: Animal daysFun days