In South Africa the baboons not only annoy farmers by raiding cornfields but also chicken coops.
Rewritten:
In South Africa the baboons not only annoy farmers by raiding cornfields but also annoy chicken coops. Hmmm! "In South Africa, the baboons annoy farmers by raiding cornfields and the chicken coops."
do you put "the chicken coops" or just "chicken coops"???
Omit "the" -- just "chicken coops" is fine.
=)
To determine whether to use "the" or not in the phrase "chicken coops," we need to understand the general rules of using articles in English.
In this specific case, we can use "the" or omit it, depending on the intention and context of the sentence. If the sentence is referring to specific chicken coops that are well-known or have already been mentioned, then you would use "the."
For example, if the previous sentence mentioned specific chicken coops that the baboons have been raiding, you would use "the chicken coops" to show that you are referring to those specific ones.
However, if you are talking generally about chicken coops in South Africa and not referring to any specific ones, you can simply say "chicken coops" without using "the."
So, in the sentence "In South Africa, the baboons annoy farmers by raiding cornfields and chicken coops," both options are grammatically correct. You can choose whether to include "the" based on the specific context and your intended meaning.