YEMASSEE, S.C. - The CEO of a research facility where 43 primates escaped said Sunday night that more than half of them have been captured.
Alpha Genesis CEO Greg Westergaard confirmed that 25 monkeys have been captured as of Sunday evening.
"All are in good heath," he said. "Others remain close by in trees."
The Rhesus macaques made a break for it Wednesday after an employee at the Alpha Genesis facility in Yemassee didn't fully lock a door as she fed and checked on them, officials said.
WATCH BELOW: New video of escaped monkeys frolicking in trees
"They are very social monkeys and they travel in groups, so when the first couple go out the door the others tend to just follow right along," Westergaard said.
Westergaard said his main goal is to have the monkeys returned safely with no other problems.
"I think they are having an adventure," he said.
The monkeys are females weighing about 7 pounds and are so young and small that they haven't been used for testing, police said.
The monkeys on Friday were exploring the outer fence of the Alpha Genesis compound and are cooing at the monkeys inside, police said in a statement.
"The primates are exhibiting calm and playful behavior, which is a positive indication," the police statement said, adding company workers are closely watching the monkeys while keeping their distance as they work to safely recapture them.
Alpha Genesis, federal health officials and police all said the monkeys pose no risk to public health. The facility breeds the monkeys to sell to medical and other researchers.
"They are not infected with any disease whatsoever. They are harmless and a little skittish," Yemassee Police Chief Gregory Alexander said Thursday.
Authorities still recommend that people who live near the compound about 1 mile from downtown Yemassee shut their windows and doors and call 911 if they see the monkeys. Approaching them could make them more skittish and harder to capture, officials said.
Eve Cooper, a biology professor at the University of Colorado Boulder who has studied rhesus macaques, said the animals have the potential to be dangerous and urged people to keep their distance.
Rhesus macaques monkeys can be aggressive. And some carry the herpes B virus, which can be fatal to humans, Cooper said.
However, Alpha Genesis states on its website that it specializes in pathogen-free primates. Cooper noted that there are pathogen-free populations of rhesus macaques that have been quarantined and tested.
"I would give them a wide berth," Cooper said. "They're unpredictable animals. And they can behave quite aggressively when they're afraid."
Alpha Genesis provides primates for research worldwide at its compound about 50 miles northeast of Savannah, according to its website.
Locally, it is known as "the monkey farm." And there is more amusement than panic around Yemassee and its population of about 1,100 just off Interstate 95 about 2 miles from Auldbrass Plantation, a Frank Lloyd Wright house designed in the 1930s.
There have been escapes before, but the monkeys haven't caused problems, said William McCoy, who owns Lowcountry Horology, a clock and watch repair shop.
"They normally come home because that's where the food is," he said.
McCoy has lived in Yemassee for about two years and while he plans to stay away from the monkeys, he has his own light-hearted plan to get them back.
"I'm stocking up bananas," McCoy said. "Maybe they'll show up."