A tourist punched a monkey that was trying to steal his bag at a mountain hotspot.
The cheeky macaque thought it had food inside and tried to snatch it from under his nose.
The holidaymaker stood on the bag to prevent the monkey from running off with it.
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He appears to kick the animal with his free foot and it quickly scales the wooden fence to confront the tourist at face level.
The man adopts a boxing stance as the monkey bares its fangs and snarls in his face.
Sensing the animal is about to strike, the tourist throws a left hook that knocks it off the fence.
The macaque climbs the wooden beams again, but the man throws a firm jab to its jaw and it retreats.
However, the cheeky monkey is seen reappearing from the overgrowth to attempt to snatch the tourist’s bag again.
He keeps his foot on the bag as another tourist arrives to scare the macaque away with his walking pole.
Local media said the man successfully safeguarded his belongings from the aggressive animal.
The bizarre scrap was filmed at the Huangshizhai viewpoint in the Zhangjiajie National Forest Park located in Hunan Province, China.
One local said: “That was a legitimate defence against an aggressive monkey.”
Another added: “I think it’s right that macaques attack threatening people and fight back.
A third said: “The monkeys in Zhangjiajie are particularly vicious”.
Staff at the scenic spot reminded visitors that although wild macaques appear cute, they can still be very dangerous.
They ask tourists to not feed them and to maintain a safe distance at all times, as reported by Need To Know.
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