Barbary macaques in Gibraltar in the context of "Barbary ape"

The Rock of Gibraltar (from the Arabic name Jabal Ṭāriq جبل طارق, meaning "Mountain of Tariq") is a monolithic limestone mountain 426 m (1,398 ft) high dominating the western entrance to the Mediterranean Sea. It is situated near the end of a narrow 9 kilometres (5.6 mi)-long promontory stretching due south into the Mediterranean Sea and is located within the British territory of Gibraltar. The rock is 27 km northeast of Tarifa, Spain, the southwestern tip of Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. The rock serves as a fortress and contains a labyrinthine network of man-made tunnels known as the Tunnels of Gibraltar. Most of the Rock's upper area comprises a nature reserve which is home to about 300 Barbary macaques. It is a major tourist attraction.

The Rock of Gibraltar, the northern of the two historic Pillars of Hercules, was known to the Romans as Mons Calpe ("Mount Calpe"); the southern Pillar of Hercules on the African side of the Strait of Gibraltar was known as Mons Abila, with a modern name of either Monte Hacho or Jebel Musa. According to an ancient legend fostered by the Greeks and the Phoenicians and later adopted by the Romans, the two pillars marked the western limit of the known world.

The Gibraltar Nature Reserve (formerly the Upper Rock Nature Reserve) is a protected nature reserve in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar that covers over 40% of the territory's land area. It was established as the Upper Rock Nature Reserve in 1993 under the International Union for Conservation of Nature's category Ia (strict nature reserve) and was last extended in 2013. It is known for its semi-wild population of Barbary macaques, and is an important resting point for migrating birds.

The macaques (/məˈkɑːk, -ˈkæk/) constitute a genus (Macaca) of gregarious Old World monkeys of the subfamily Cercopithecinae. The 23 species of macaques inhabit ranges throughout Asia, North Africa, and Europe (in Gibraltar). Macaques are principally frugivorous (preferring fruit), although their diet also includes seeds, leaves, flowers, and tree bark. Some species such as the long-tailed macaque (M. fascicularis; also called the crab-eating macaque) will supplement their diets with small amounts of meat from shellfish, insects, and small mammals. On average, a southern pig-tailed macaque (M. nemestrina) in Malaysia eats about 70 large rats each year. All macaque social groups are arranged around dominant matriarchs.

Macaques are found in a variety of habitats throughout the Asian continent and are highly adaptable. Certain species are synanthropic, having learned to live alongside humans, but they have become problematic in urban areas in Southeast Asia and are not suitable to live with, as they can carry transmittable diseases.