Photo and caption by Bruce Siceloff

An American couple told me what happened when they stopped to let a baboon troop cross the road. The alpha male opened their car door, climbed into the back seat and grabbed the woman's purse, baring his teeth to keep them at bay. He hopped out, opened the zippers and distributed the loot - binoculars, camera, toiletries - to the females and little ones. A few days later, on a coastal road a few miles from the Cape of Good Hope, we came upon a male scowling, growling and yawning from his perch on this warning sign.

Location: Cape Town, South Africa