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Scientists and researchers are being urged not to post selfies of themselves with primates like monkeys or gorillas on social media.

It's all in a bid to help protect threatened species, many of which are illegally caught and taken from the wild and used to attract tourists in some countries.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN) primate specialist group is calling on people including animal experts, conservationists, TV presenters and scientists not to share photos of themselves with monkeys online.

It says that although pictures and videos posted can expose lots of people to the importance of protecting primates, it can also end up having exactly the opposite effect.

It has released a set of guidelines to help people understand some of the issues with sharing photos of themselves with monkeys or other primates.

"If the context of the images is inappropriate, unclear, or lost, people may draw mistaken conclusions about the content. These mistaken conclusions can have unintended, negative consequences for primate welfare and conservation," the authors of the guidelines said in their publication.

Why is this a big issue?

The IUCN believes that sharing photos of humans with monkeys can be a big problem for several reasons.

Photos of people holding or being very close to monkeys may impact how the public view the animals and it could wrongly lead viewers of the content to believe the animals are not physically dangerous and that they don't pose any risk to humans.

In some cases, some people may feel they could even make good pets.

"These behaviours can lead people to perceive primates as merely sources of entertainment, and thereby underestimate their biodiversity value and threatened status, which can then undermine conservation efforts..." the authors of the guidelines have said.

In some countries, humans and nature are very separate from one another and in other cultures, they aren't so much.

Again, photos which show monkeys in close physically contact with people could lead some to view the primates as tame and gentle, especially in cultures or environments where those types are wild animals aren't typically found.

If people come across photos or videos of celebrities, animal experts or tourists with monkeys, it could also encourage them to want to get photos of their own with the animals which could negatively affect the welfare of monkeys welfare and conservation efforts.

It's hoped the guidelines will make people more aware of the importance of looking after not only primates like chimps, gorillas and macaques, but also lots of other species, in particular those that are endangered.