Stunning close-up footage captures curious macaques as they steal cameras in ...

Cheeky monkeys! Stunning close-up footage captures curious macaques as they steal cameras during the filming of a wildlife documentary in Sri Lanka The monkeys unscrew the camera before scampering away with the device   Throughout the filming the macaques pester the crew and prod the equipment Sri Lanka's Tourism Bureau made the film to highlight the nation's rich wildlife 

By Jack Elsom For Mailonline

Published: 11:56 GMT, 6 March 2019 | Updated: 11:57 GMT, 6 March 2019

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Stunning behind-the-scenes footage of a wildlife documentary shows a gang of very cheeky monkeys stealing the crew's cameras and scampering away to make a movie of their own. 

The macaques also poke and prod at the equipment, press their faces up against the lenses and even try to grab things from the crew's hands.  

And although the exasperated director jokes that 'this is what happens when you work with monkeys', the team are thrilled by the extraordinary close-up shots of the animals.

The video exclusively seen by MailOnline begins with some footage of the tan-coloured macaques basking among the ruins of an ancient temple in Polonnaruwa.

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Selfie time: Behind-the-scenes footage shows a group of macaque monkeys playing with a film crew's cameras

Selfie time: Behind-the-scenes footage shows a group of macaque monkeys playing with a film crew's cameras

But suddenly, a pair of big googly eyes pop up into view and stare straight down the lens while another monkey lurks nearby.

The couple of macaques then start fiddling with the camera before they set about detaching it from the rod it is rigged to.

The backdrop of the temple then starts to spin as the monkeys unscrew the camera and run away to a patch of forest where one climbs up a tree with the device still clasped in his hands.

It then drops the camera to the ground

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