The “monkey hill” at Yuantong Zoo in Kunming city is quite a spectacle for the venue’s many visitors. Tourists to the zoo in southwest China’s Yunnan Province are curious as to how cats and monkeys there came to live together in harmony. /CFP Photo

Three years ago, “monkey hill” was overrun by rats due to food given to the primates by visitors at the zoo. It became quite a problem, as the rats not only ate the food but also began disturbing tourists. The zoo administrators went through a lot of effort to get rid of the rodents but with little results. /CFP Photo

In a last ditch solution, zoo staff put seven stray cats on the hill to exterminate the rats.  However, the monkeys were not fans of their new neighbors and this led to conflict between the two species. But after a period of time living side by side, they appear to have reached an agreement and now co-exist well together. /CFP Photo

As of this year, the cat community on “monkey hill” at Yuantong Zoo has increased to 12, with the birth of five kittens.