The only surviving monkey from a truck that crashed in Mississippi while carrying 21 macaques for biomedical research has been given a permanent home at a New Jersey wildlife refuge.

The young adult rhesus macaque, named Forrest, was on the run for about a week after the truck overturned on Interstate 59 in late October.

He has now been relocated to the nonprofit Popcorn Park Animal Refuge in Lacey Township, about 50 miles north of Atlantic City.

The animal refuge wrote on Facebook that Forrest is 'now living safely in our Monkey House' and that he 'is steadily acclimating to his new home.'

The truck crash made national headlines after most of the monkeys that were in the vehicle were killed, but several had managed to escape. Five of the macaques died in the immediate aftermath as they ran across the highway and interstate median while authorities tried to capture them.

Three other monkeys, including Forrest, evaded capture and were loose for days. The two monkeys who did not survive were shot and killed by civilians who said they were protecting their families.

At the time of the crash, the local sheriff's office said the macaques were disease-ridden, carrying hepatitis C, herpes, and COVID.

Tulane University, which had previously housed the monkeys at a research center in New Orleans, later said that was false and that the animals 'were not carrying any diseases and had received recent checkups confirming that they were pathogen-free.'

This young adult rhesus macaque, named Forrest, was on the run for about a week after a truck carrying him and 20 other monkeys overturned on Interstate 59 in late October

He is the only remaining survivor of the truck crash, and has now been given a permanent home at a New Jersey wildlife refuge

Forrest was relocated to the nonprofit Popcorn Park Animal Refuge in Lacey Township, about 50 miles north of Atlantic City

Rhesus Macaques

Rhesus macaques are among the most medically studied animals on the planet, and they are highly adaptable.

The primates are native to mainland Asia, but they can also be found throughout the world in Nepal, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Puerto Rico.

On average, the monkeys weigh 16 pounds.

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Still, locals had been told not to approach the escaped primates, as they are known to be aggressive.

Forrest, the last monkey standing, was captured by workers from one of the companies that had been operating the truckload of macaques after a resident who lives near the crash site spotted and reported him, according to officials.

Popcorn Park Animal Refuge said that because Forrest had been outside of captivity so long, he could not be returned to the research program, so their 'team stepped in to offer him lifelong sanctuary.'

'When he arrived, he had no name, only a tattooed identification number, "NI 62,"' the refuge wrote on Facebook, revealing that his new moniker was given to him by staffers.

The animal refuge said that Forrest has been slowly building trust with his caretakers and the other monkeys.

They also said he has been discovering a growing list of favorite foods, with grapes topping the list.

The monkey has begun vocalizing, which is 'a good sign that he is becoming more comfortable and confident in his new surroundings,' the refuge wrote on Facebook.

Popcorn Park Animal Refuge has asked people to donate in order to support Forrest and the other animals in their care.

The truck crash made national headlines after most of the monkeys who were in the vehicle were killed, but several managed to escape

The two monkeys who did not survive were shot and killed by civilians who said they were protecting their families. This is one of those shot monkeys

The animal refuge said that Forrest has been slowly building trust with his caretakers and the other monkeys and that he loves grapes

Rhesus macaques typically weigh about 16 pounds and are among the most medically studied animals on the planet. They are the most global nonhuman primates because they can adapt to a wide range of environments.

They are native to mainland Asia, and have also been found in Afghanistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Puerto Rico.

A spokesperson for Tulane University previously explained to the Daily Mail that its National Biomedical Research Center provides organizations with non-human primates for scientific discovery.

The university did not own the monkeys at the time of the crash, and it was not responsible for their transportation, but it did send a team of animal care experts to assist authorities after the truck turned over.

Forrest's saga came about one year after another research monkey escape, when 43 rhesus macaques escaped from a South Carolina compound that breeds them for medical research, because an employee did not properly lock an enclosure.