Who eats monkeys in nature. Where can you find certain monkeys? Known places of residence. Monkeys of Africa - ancient animals

In the language of the indigenous people of Africa - the Luba tribe - "chimpanzee" means "human-like". The veracity of this statement has been scientifically proven. Scientists have calculated that evolutionary paths Chimpanzees and humans diverged only 6 million years ago. And today it is the brightest and most amazing representative of the genus great primates, genetically and biochemically to Homo sapiens the closest. For example, the similarity between our DNA is almost 90%.

Description of the chimpanzee

But the "humanity" of chimpanzees is not limited to the similarity of DNA.

Appearance

Chimpanzees, like humans, have blood types and individual fingerprints.. They can be distinguished by them - the pattern never repeats. Chimpanzees are different in size from humans. The largest males do not exceed 1.5 meters in height. Females are even lower - 1.3 meters. But at the same time, chimpanzees are very strong physically and have well-developed muscles, which not every Homo sapiens can boast of.

The structure of the skull is distinguished by pronounced superciliary arches, a flat nose and a strongly protruding jaw, armed sharp teeth. The cranium is made by nature with a margin - the brain occupies only half of its volume. The fore and hind legs of chimpanzees are the same length. An outstanding feature of the structure of their paws is thumb, which is located at a distance from the rest and allows the monkey to deftly manage small objects.

The entire body of a chimpanzee is covered with hair. Nature made an exception for the face, palms and soles of the monkey's feet. Adolescent chimpanzees have a small patch of dark thick fur white color- in the region of the coccyx. As the monkey matures, the hairs darken and turn brown. This feature allows chimpanzees to distinguish still children from adults and treat them accordingly. It has been noticed that monkeys with white "islands" on the coccyx get away with a lot, that is, from their paws. Adult primates do not punish them for pranks and do not require much. But as soon as the white hairs disappear, childhood ends.

Chimpanzee species

Chimpanzees belong to the genus of great apes and are relatives of gorillas and orangutans. There are two types of chimpanzee - the common chimpanzee and the bonobo chimpanzee. Bonobo is often referred to as the "pygmy chimpanzee", which is not entirely true. Bonobo is not a dwarf per se, just the structure of his body differs from an ordinary chimpanzee in great grace. Also, this species, the only one of the monkeys, has red lips, like a person.

The common chimpanzee has subspecies:

• black-faced or chimpanzee of which - differs in freckles on the face;
• western chimpanzee - has a black mask on the face in the shape of a butterfly;
• shveyfurtovsky - has two hallmarks: light complexion, acquiring a dirty shade with age, and longer hair than relatives.

Character and lifestyle

Chimpanzee is a social animallives in groups of up to 20-30 individuals. The male chimpanzee leads the group, the female leads the bonobos. The leader is not always the strongest primate of the group, but he must be the most cunning. He needs to be able to build relationships with relatives in such a way that they obey him. To do this, he chooses a company of close associates, such as guards, on whom he can rely in case of danger. The rest of the competing males are kept in fear of obedience.

When the leader “fails” due to old age or injury, a younger and more promising “commander” immediately takes his place. Females in the pack also obey a strict hierarchy. There are female leaders who are in a special position. Males pay increased attention to them, and this secures their status of being chosen. Such chimpanzees get the most tidbits and the most a large number of boyfriends during mating.

It is interesting! Bonobo, due to the lack of aggression in character, all conflicts within the group are resolved peacefully - by mating.

Female chimpanzees are considered to be more obedient, but less intelligent than males in training and training. But they express great affection for a person and do not harbor the threat of aggressive disobedience, unlike males, who are “led astray by the righteous” instinct of dominance. The social way of life makes it easier for chimpanzees to hunt, protect offspring, and helps to accumulate useful skills in a group. They learn a lot from each other while living together. Scientists have proven that lonely monkeys have reduced overall health indicators. Worse appetite than collective relatives, and slowed metabolism.

Chimpanzees - forest dwellers. They need trees. They build nests on them, find food, run away from the enemy, grabbing branches, from the enemy. But, with equal success, these monkeys also move on the ground, using all four paws. Upright walking, on two legs, is not typical for chimpanzees in the natural environment.

It has been observed that chimpanzees lose out to orangutans in tree climbing agility, but outperform gorillas in keeping their nests clean. The design of chimpanzee nests is not distinguished by elegance and is made unpretentiously - from branches and sticks, gathered together in a chaotic manner. Chimpanzees sleep only in nests, in trees - for safety reasons.

Chimpanzees know how to swim, but they don't like it. They generally prefer not to get wet unless absolutely necessary. Their main pastime is eating and relaxing. Everything is slow and measured. The only thing that violates the vital harmony of the monkeys is the appearance of the enemy. In this case, the chimpanzees raise an unbelievable cry. Chimpanzees are capable of making up to 30 types of sounds, but they cannot reproduce human speech, since they “speak” on exhalation, and not on inhalation, like a person. Communication within the group is also aided by body language and body posture. There is also facial expressions. Chimpanzees can smile and change facial expressions.

Chimpanzees are smart animals. These monkeys are fast learners. Living with a person, they easily adopt his manners and habits, sometimes demonstrating amazing results. It is known that the sailor's monkey coped with the anchor and sails, was able to kindle the stove in the galley and keep the fire in it.

Living in a group, chimpanzees successfully share their experiences. The young learn from mature primates simply by observing their behavior and copying it. These monkeys are vivo Habitats themselves thought of using sticks and stones as tools for obtaining food, and large plant leaves as a scoop for water or an umbrella in case of rain, or a fan, or even toilet paper.

Chimpanzees are capable of admiring a flower that has no nutritional value, or carefully studying a crawling python.

It is interesting! Unlike humans, a chimpanzee will not destroy useless and harmless objects and living creatures for him, rather, on the contrary. Chimpanzees have been known to feed turtles. Just!

how long does a chimpanzee live

AT harsh conditions In the wild, chimpanzees rarely live past 50 years of age. But in the zoo, under human supervision, this monkey is released up to 60 years.

Range, habitats

Chimpanzees are inhabitants of Central and West Africa. They choose tropical rain and mountain forests, with lots of vegetation. Today, bonobos can only be found in Central Africa- in humid forests between the Congo and Lualaba rivers.

Populations of common chimpanzees have been registered in the territory of: Cameroon, Guinea, Congo, Mali, Nigeria, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania and a number of other states of equatorial Africa.

It's certainly not a secret to anyone that long time in scientific circles, the monkey was considered our closest relative, and the origin of man was from the monkey. Now this scientific theory questioned, not all scientists believe that we, the so-called "homo sapiens" descended from monkeys. However, scientific disputes on this subject are still ongoing, but our article is not about this, but about those amazing creatures, our smaller brothers, who, among the entire diverse animal world of planet Earth, really, in their structure, are most similar to us humans.

Monkey: description, structure, characteristics. What does a monkey look like?

Let's start with the fact that the very origin of the name "monkey" is very curious. Until the 16th century, we called the monkey "opica", by the way, the Czechs still call it that. After the Russian traveler Athanasius Nikitin returned from his famous trip to India, he brought into use the Persian name "abuzina", meaning literally "father of fornication". Subsequently, the Persian "abuzina" was actually transformed into a "monkey".

The body length of a monkey, depending on its species, can range from 15 cm (for a pygmy igunka) to 2 m (for a gorilla). Also, the mass of a monkey can be from 150 grams in the smallest representatives of the species, up to 275 kg - this is how much huge gorillas weigh.

Many monkeys lead an arboreal lifestyle, that is, they mainly live in trees and, as a result, have a long back, a shortened narrow chest, thin hip bones. But orangutans and gibbons have a wide chest and massive pelvic bones.

Some monkeys have very a long tail, the length of which can even exceed the size of the body, the monkey's tail acts as a balancer when moving between trees. But the monkeys living on the ground have a very short tail. As for monkeys without a tail, all "humanoid" monkeys do not have it (as well as people do not have it).

The body of monkeys is covered with wool different colors, depending on the species, it can be light brown, red, black and white, gray-olive. Some adult monkeys can turn gray with age, and male monkeys can go bald, again almost like people.

Monkeys have mobile, well-developed upper limbs, very similar to our hands, each with five fingers, and monkeys living in trees have short and large fingers, which allows them to fly comfortably from branch to branch.

Monkeys have binocular vision, many of them have black pupils of the eyes.

The teeth of monkeys are also similar to those of humans, narrow-nosed monkeys have 32 teeth, and broad-nosed monkeys have 36.

The brain of the monkey is also very well developed; among other representatives of the animal world, only dolphins could compete with monkeys in terms of intelligence. Great apes have entire regions of the brain responsible for meaningful actions.

Monkeys communicate with each other using a special signal system, consisting of facial expressions and sounds. The most "talkative" among them are monkeys and capuchins, they have rich facial expressions, are able to express a wide range of feelings.

Where do monkeys live

Monkeys live on all continents, with the exception of Antarctica, of course. In Europe, they live only in Gibraltar, in Southeast Asia, Africa (with the exception of Madagascar), Central and South America, and Australia.

Monkey lifestyle

Monkeys live in small families and, according to their lifestyle, are divided into tree monkeys living in trees and terrestrial ones living on the ground. Monkeys usually lead sedentary life and rarely leave their territory.

Sometimes there are clashes between male monkeys, with the goal of deciding the answer to the question “who is the main male here”, although often such clashes are limited to a demonstration of the strength of each male and do not reach a real fight.

How long do monkeys live

On average, the life expectancy of monkeys is 30-40 years. However, great apes live longer, they can live up to 50 years.

What do monkeys eat

Monkeys are omnivorous animals, and their diet depends on one or another species and also on the habitat. Tree monkeys eat everything that can be obtained from trees - leaves, various fruits, nuts, and sometimes insects.

Terrestrial monkeys feed on rhizomes and shoots of plants (for example, ferns are a favorite delicacy of the gorilla), fruits (figs, mangoes, and, of course, bananas). Also, some monkeys know how to fish, eat mollusks, rodents, grasshoppers, beetles and other small animals with pleasure.

Although there are species of monkeys that eat only one, certain food, for example, Japanese short-tailed macaques are pure vegetarians and feed exclusively on tree bark, and the crab-eating macaque, as its name implies, eats crabs.

Monkey Enemies

Unfortunately, the monkeys themselves have many enemies in natural conditions who is not averse to feasting on these primates. The most sworn enemies of monkeys are leopards, which are also capable of climbing trees well and other predatory "" - lions, cheetahs.

Types of monkeys, photos and names

In general, all types of monkeys can be divided into:

• broad-nosed monkeys - this includes monkeys that live on the American continent,
• narrow-nosed monkeys - all other monkeys that live in Africa, Asia, Australia and European Gibraltar.

Regarding different types monkeys, then zoologists separately distinguished the types of anthropoid apes, types of small monkeys, etc. In general, there are more than 400 species of these primates in nature, below we will describe the most interesting of them.

It is a member of the spider monkey family. It is named so due to the fact that it makes characteristic sounds that can be heard at a distance of up to 5 km. The males of the black howler are covered with black hair and fully justify their name, but the females of the black howler are not black at all, their coat is yellow-brown or olive. The length of this monkey is 56-67 cm, with a weight of 6.7 kg. The black howler lives in South America, on the territory of countries such as Paraguay, Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia.

Belonging to the chaintail family, the capuchin is an arboreal monkey that lives in trees. The weight of a capuchin is 3 kg. Has a brown or gray-brown color. Very curious feature of this species of monkeys is their habit of rubbing themselves poisonous centipedes() to protect against blood-sucking insects. Mourning capuchins live in the crowns of the tropical forests of Brazil, Venezuela.

It got its unusual name due to its gray with shades of blue color and a white stripe of wool that passes over the eyebrows like a crown. The body length of the crowned monkey is 50-60 cm and weighs 5-6 kg. Monkeys live in African forests from the Congo Basin to Ethiopia and Angola.

Belongs to the great apes of the gibbon family. It has a length of 55-65 cm and a weight of 5-6 kg. The coat color of the white-handed gibbon can be black, sand or brown, but its hands are always white, hence the name. These gibbons live in tropical forests China and the Malay Archipelago.

eastern gorilla

Gorilla is the most big monkey in the world. The average size of a gorilla is 185 cm with a body weight of 180 kg. Although sometimes there are more large gorillas, weighing and all 220 kg. These huge monkeys are distinguished by a large head, broad shoulders, expanded chest. The color of the gorilla's coat is black; in old age, gorillas, like people, can turn gray. Despite their formidable appearance, gorillas prefer to eat grass, plant shoots, rather than hunt for game. Gorillas live in equatorial forests Central and West Africa.

He is also a white-headed saki, in our opinion, this monkey has the strangest appearance - the black color of his coat contrasts brightly with the white color of his face. The size of pale saki is 30-48 cm and weighs 2 kg. This is a tree monkey living in the forests of Brazil, Venezuela, Suriname.

He is a flattened baboon, is a species of narrow-nosed monkeys who spend their entire lives exclusively on earth. It is also a rather large monkey, the body length of the hamadryas is 70-100 cm, weight 30 kg. It also has an unusual appearance - long hair on the shoulders and chest forms a kind of fur cape. The hamadryas lives both in Africa and Asia in a number of countries, such as Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan, Yemen.

The nosy monkey, she is also a kahau, belongs to the monkey family. A striking feature of this monkey is its large nose, which the monkeys even have to hold with their hands during the meal. It has a yellow-brown color. The size of the nose is 66-77 cm with a weight of 15-22 kg. It also has a long tail, which is equal in size to the length of their body. These unusual look monkeys exclusively on the island of Borneo.

Living in the northern part of the Japanese island of Honshu, this monkey is a real hallmark of these places. The size of the Japanese macaque is 80-95 cm, weight 12-14 kg. These monkeys have bright red skin, which is especially noticeable on their face and buttocks, devoid of wool. Macaques living in northern Japan are cold winter months they experience in special thermal springs, warming themselves in their hot waters (and at the same time attract crowds of tourists from all over the world).

The Sumatran orangutan is a rather large monkey, its size reaches one and a half meters and weighs 150-160 kg. In terms of size, the orangutan takes an honorable second place after the gorilla. It has a well-developed musculature, a massive body covered with red hair, climbs trees perfectly. The muzzle of the orangutan has fatty rollers located on the cheeks, and the beard and mustache give it a very funny look. The charismatic Sumatran orangutan lives exclusively on the island of Sumatra.

For some reason, monkeys are most associated with the chimpanzee, which is the most typical representative monkey kingdom. Chimpanzees are also relatively large monkeys, their body length is 140-160 cm and weighs 65-80 kg, that is, they are like people in their size. The body of a chimpanzee is covered with black fur. It is also very curious that these anthropoid apes are the only ones who thought of creating a semblance of tools that facilitate the process of obtaining food, they are able to sharpen the ends of sticks, turning them into imitation spears, they can use stone leaves as traps for insects, etc. Without a doubt, it is chimpanzees are the most intelligent among the monkeys, and if Darwin's theory is right, then it is they who are in the closest family relationship with us people. Chimpanzees live mainly in Central and West Africa.

And finally, it was impossible not to mention the pygmy marmoset - the smallest monkey in the world. Its length is only 10-15 cm, weight - 100-150 grams. Live in forests South America feeding exclusively on tree sap.

Reproduction of monkeys in nature

Reproduction of monkeys occurs throughout the year and for each species has its own individual characteristics. Puberty in monkeys usually occurs by 7-8 years. Some species of monkeys are monogamous and create permanent families for life, others, such as capuchins, on the contrary, are polygamous, so female capuchins mate with several males, males do the same.

The pregnancy of a monkey can last from 6 to 8.5 months, again depending on the species. Usually one cub is born at a time, but there are species of monkeys that can give birth to twins.

Little monkeys, like real primates, are fed with mother's breast milk, and the period of feeding is also different for different monkeys. The female gorilla feeds her cubs the longest - this period lasts up to 3.5 years.

Keeping monkeys at home

Despite the fact that monkeys are wild creatures, nevertheless, they are very easy to train, get used to captivity, and under favorable conditions feel quite comfortable in zoos. The truth is to keep a monkey at home is not the most best idea, they are terrible mischievous and fidgety, and if you already decide to start pet monkey, then you should get ready that she will arrange real chaos in your house. To prevent it, the monkey can be kept in some spacious cage.

You can feed the monkey with fish, chicken or turkey meat, boiled eggs, vegetables, nuts, fresh fruits.

• Some species of monkeys are very clean and spend almost the whole day caring for their appearance.
• During the development of astronautics, 32 monkeys have already managed to visit space.
• Spider monkeys have such a developed and strong tail that they can easily hang on a tree branch with just one help.
• A group of American scientists managed to teach a female gorilla a certain number of words from the language of the deaf and dumb, after which she was able to quite successfully communicate with people.

monkeys video

And finally, an interesting documentary about monkeys from the Discovery Channel - "Monkeys on the Warpath"

No animal arouses as much interest in people as monkeys. And all because they are our closest relatives, both physiologically and intellectually. Monkeys make up a separate infraorder of the Apes in the order of Primates. Among primitive animals, their close relatives are tarsiers, lemurs, tupai, lorises, mites, and insectivorous mammals are distant. This relationship debunks one of the most enduring myths about monkeys as the most perfect creatures on the planet. In fact, they only have developed intellect, which is due to the specifics of the environment of their existence, but the physiology of monkeys is at a rather primitive level.

crested macaque, or crested baboon(Macaca nigra) - the first species of monkeys that entered the history of mankind as the author of a selfie.

The body sizes of these animals vary widely: the smallest monkey - the pygmy marmoset - weighs only 100-150 g, and the largest are gorillas, whose weight can reach 140-200 kg. Male orangutans almost keep up with them, whose weight in rare cases can reach up to 180 kg (their females are much smaller).

Dwarf marmosets (Cebuella pygmaea).

It is clear that such a difference in size could not but affect appearance. If you look for common features in monkeys, then they are united by a rounded skull that contains a large brain; small size of fixed ears; superciliary arches outlining the eye sockets; big eyes adapted to see in daylight; short movable neck; muscular long limbs. It is characteristic that all monkeys have a clavicle - a bone that allows their forelimbs to move in different directions, in contrast to the paws of terrestrial tetrapods, which are able to move mainly in the "back and forth" direction.

In primitive New World broad-nosed monkeys, the facial part of the skull is relatively poorly developed, so their muzzles are flat. In more advanced narrow-nosed monkeys of the Old World, the jaws protrude noticeably forward, for example, in baboons that do not disdain hunting, this gives an almost dog-like appearance.

The male hamadryas (Papio hamadryas) yawns to show off his teeth to rivals. Such a grin is often used by baboons to bloodlessly strengthen discipline.

broad-nosed and narrow-nosed monkeys they are called not so much by the size of the nose, but by the direction of the nostrils: in the broad-nosed they are set apart, and in the narrow-nosed they are directed forward. In males, the nose is similar to a cucumber - it acts as a resonator, while in females of this species, the noses are short and upturned.

Male proboscis, or kahau (Nasalis larvatus).

Very short noses with nostrils directed almost upwards in rhinopithecines.

Male black rhinopithecus (Rhinopithecus bieti).

Compared to other animals, monkeys have well-developed facial muscles, since their grimaces perform a communicative function. The vision of these primates is binocular and color, which allows you to quickly determine the distance to objects and accurately identify them. Such vision is vital for the inhabitants of high crowns, feeding on a variety of fruits, leaves, and sometimes small animals.

The front paws of monkeys are five-fingered, with the first (thumb) toe set aside, which allows them to wrap around tree branches and manipulate objects. To obtain food, monkeys use tools, such as: stones, twigs, rolled leaves, with which they break nuts, pull out ants, scoop up water, etc.

Brown black-headed capuchin, or faun (Cebus apella) uses a heavy stone to crush the shell of a hard nut.

However, in some tree monkeys, the first toe can be reduced, in which case the paw is used as a hook, that is, the animal hangs on a branch, holding on to it with all four fingers. The hind legs of monkeys also have a set finger: on the one hand, this allows them to more effectively hold on to branches, and on the other hand, it does not interfere with walking and running on the ground. By the way, monkeys move, leaning on the entire surface of their palms and soles, and only great apes (orangutans, gorillas, gibbons, chimpanzees) bend their fingers on their palms while walking, leaning on their back side.

Monkey fingers end in nails; in small tree monkeys, they sometimes have an arched shape, which makes them look like claws from the side.

The tail is perhaps the most variable organ of monkeys. In anthropoid primates and macaques, it is completely absent, in pig-tailed macaques it is short and does not play any role in movement, in other species it is long, but functions differently. For example, the monkeys of the Old World use it as a balance while jumping (and the monkey hussars also lean on it when they stand), but among the broad-nosed monkeys there are many species with an extremely tenacious tail. Its lower surface is bare and has papillary lines, imprint-like fingers, besides the tail itself is very flexible and strong. All this allows its owner to wrap his tail around the branches, literally feeling their surface, and also hang on it. It is not for nothing that woolly, reddish and spider monkeys are sometimes called five-armed, implying that the tail replaces them with an additional limb. True, the smallest monkeys (marmosets, marmosets, tamarins) have a long tail that is not at all muscular, these species use it like squirrels, like a steering wheel when jumping.

Red-haired monkey (Brachyteles hypoxanthus) with a cub moves over an air bridge between trees.

Monkeys are characterized by thick hair without undercoat, but at the same time their palms, feet and partly their face are always bare. In some species, other parts of the body are also naked: in geladas, the skin on the chest, in all baboons, ischial calluses, in uakari, the skull.

Baboon or yellow baboon (Papio cynocephalus) showing black ischial calluses. In other species of baboons, these body parts are usually red in color.

Skin color in different species can be flesh, bright red, blue, black, or even multi-colored, like a mandrill.

The unusual skin texture of the Nemean thin-bodied (Pygathrix nemaeus) makes it look like a doll.

The coat of monkeys is often colored black, brown, grey colour, a few species are characterized by variegated coloration.

Nemean thinbodies are also among the most brightly colored monkeys.

Many species have decorations in the form of elongated hair growing on the head, face, neck, shoulders and forming, respectively, a lush head of hair, a beard and mustache, a “hood”, a mane. Such ornaments may be peculiar only to males (for example, the mane of baboons) or to both sexes (for example, the mustache of the imperial saguina).

Imperial saguins (Saguinus imperator).

In general, monkeys are characterized by sexual dimorphism, which is reduced to a brighter color and larger size of males. However, it is expressed differently in different species. As a rule, the strongest differences between males and females can be observed in polygamous species with a strong dominance of the leader (baboons, proboscis), less clear - in gregarious monkeys with less aggressive males (gorillas, macaques), and very insignificant - in monkeys living in pairs. , where the male and female equally take care of the offspring (marmosets, marmosets, tamarins).

Family of Tibetan macaques (Macaca thibetana).

All monkeys are heat-loving animals living in the equatorial, tropical and subtropical zones of Asia, Africa, South and Central America. In Europe, monkeys are known only in the extreme southwest of the continent - at Cape Gibraltar. Magots live here, but they also came to Europe with the help of a man with his historical homeland - North Africa. The other extreme northern habitat of these primates is located on Japanese islands. Here, Japanese macaques managed to populate even islands with temperate climate where there is a lot of snow in winter. True, it is not the skin that helps them overcome frosts, but their intellect - these monkeys have learned to warm themselves in hot springs, where they spend almost the entire winter day.

Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata), warming themselves in the water, simultaneously engage in daily affairs: eat, sort out each other's wool. This group indulges in a midday nap.

The monkeys' favorite habitats are dense forests with many fruit trees. Few species have mastered dry woodlands (monkeys), savannahs (baboons), rocky slopes (magots, geladas).

A flock of langurs hide from torrents flowing down a rocky slope in the Thar Desert. Most monkeys do not like water and even swim only when absolutely necessary.

All monkeys are herbivorous to some degree. Some of them adhere to an exclusively vegetarian diet, eating the fruits of trees, leaves, young shoots, seeds, such species include orangutans, gorillas, and howler monkeys. Others replenish protein reserves in the body, periodically eating eggs and chicks, small lizards, crabs. These species include macaques, monkeys, marmosets. Finally, meat plays a significant role in the diet of baboons, sometimes these monkeys even catch such large animals as cubs of gazelles and small antelopes.

A baboon with a baby gazelle he killed.

The nature of the diet leaves its mark on the way of life. Herbivorous marmosets, marmosets and gibbons live in pairs or small families, including close relatives (older children, grandparents). These monkeys are very peaceful, they do not like fights, they mark the territory either with urine (marmosets) or with special songs (gibbons).

The jointed gibbon, or siamang (Symphalangus syndactylus) performs a morning song. The bag under his throat serves as a resonator for him, amplifying the sound.

Very calm herbivorous orangutans living alone, and gorillas with small harems. But these species, on occasion, can fend for themselves. Schooling species have a higher level of aggression. For example, howler monkeys protect their possessions and females with deafening cries, and the voices of these monkeys are the loudest sounds made by animals!

Black howler monkeys (Alouatta caraya) guard the borders of their territory.

Moderately pugnacious omnivorous monkeys, macaques, even more aggressive baboons. Flocks of these monkeys have a leader male, to whom all the rest obey. Young males can get along with him only under the condition of full submission, otherwise they will have to learn the strength of his bites on their own skin. Females play the role of disenfranchised concubines, the fate of each of them depends on the taste of the leader: the favorites receive maximum care and food, the rest are forced to be content with the remnants from the table of the stronger and more successful. In chimpanzees, intra-pack aggression is removed either by sexual contact or by organized warfare against another pack. In the latter case, the winners can taste the meat of the vanquished. By the way, chimpanzees are the only monkeys that prey on other monkeys. And it's not only about clan differences, but also about monkeys, regularly falling into the teeth of large "brothers".

Two male baboons got into a fight. Teenagers felt whose will take, and immediately supported the strong. Although their participation in the battle is symbolic, such training will allow them to gain the necessary experience and confidence in order to claim leadership themselves in the future.

Regardless of the level of relationships within the flock, the communication of monkeys is accompanied by complex forms of behavior. These animals are not alien to such feelings as friendship, love, envy, resentment, rancor, cunning, anger, grief and empathy.

This female chakma, or bear baboon (Papio ursinus), has lost a cub, but even after his death she continues to carry the baby's body on her back until the corpse is completely decomposed.

In case of danger, their calls not only indicate an approaching threat, but accurately identify it: there are separate signals indicating a leopard, poisonous snakes, python, monkey-eating eagle, armed and unarmed man. Thus, monkeys have a primitive speech, in which at least nouns are present. In captivity, monkeys cannot reproduce human speech due to the difference in structure. vocal cords, but are quite capable of mastering sign language or signals.

Gorilla Koko, who knew sign language, explained to her caretakers that she wanted to have a cub. But since scientists did not allow her to mate, their ward was allowed to adopt a kitten. Koko was very attached to the adopted baby and cried when she had to be separated from him.

Monkeys do not have a specific breeding season. Mating takes place all year round. The female usually gives birth to one baby, rarely two (twins are more common in tamarins). A newborn is born sighted, covered with short hair, but helpless. At first, he hangs on his mother's stomach, later he moves onto her back. Childbirth occurs in a flock and attracts increased attention to the young mother, her social status rises for a while. Male marmosets and tamarins give birth to females and even eat the placenta, subsequently they take the most Active participation in the upbringing of offspring: they carry the baby on themselves, and mothers give it only for the time of feeding. Males of other monkeys take care of the young, allowing babies and teenagers more than ordinary members of the pack are allowed, but they do not show much attention to their own children. The childhood of monkeys is relatively long, which is due to complex forms of behavior - in order to gain the necessary experience, babies will have to long time watch adults and play with each other.

Baby gorillas and chimpanzees study together the world. Although such a meeting is impossible in nature, in captivity the kids quickly found a common language.

In large monkeys natural enemies no, only chimpanzees, as mentioned above, can die from the paws and stones of a neighboring flock. Things are different in medium and small monkeys. Their enemies are primarily wild cats (leopard, jaguar, less often - a lion or a tiger), all kinds of snakes, especially pythons and boas. At a watering place, they can fall into the mouth of a crocodile. In South America and on the islands of the Philippine archipelago, monkey-eating eagles prey on monkeys. Their name eloquently makes it clear that they have achieved perfection in catching primates. However, danger from the air can lie in wait for monkeys in other parts of the world, where they can be attacked by kites, hawks and crowned eagles.

A crowned eagle (Stephanoaetus coronatus) caught a monkey.

Monkeys are susceptible to human infections, such as tonsillitis, influenza, tuberculosis, herpes, hepatitis, rabies, measles, so in areas of mass tourism they are protected from contact with strangers.

This baby gorilla was rescued from the hands of animal dealers in the Congo. While the orphan is getting used to a new home, the workers of the rehabilitation center wear masks so as not to infect the baby with human infections.

But human impact on these animals is not limited to passive transmission of infections. For a long time, people hunted monkeys: the natives ate their meat, more developed peoples simply destroyed them as pests. Agriculture raiding fields and plantations, the white colonizers killed the Gverets for their beautiful fur, the paws of the gorillas were used to make souvenirs. Finally, with the advent of the "love of animals" fashion, many species of monkeys have become desirable pets. This demand began to be satisfied by thousands of poachers around the world, catching monkeys in nature for resale. As a result, many species of monkeys are on the verge of extinction and are listed in the International Red Book.

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Man is very interested in the life of monkeys. Still would! Not only are there rumors in the scientific world about her involvement in the human race, but the habits of primates resemble people. Sometimes it seems that these animals are almost as intelligent as we are. Where do monkeys live?

What country do monkeys live in?

There are more than four hundred species of primates in the world. The best known are the humanoids. In nature, there are monkeys with a body length from nine centimeters to one hundred and eighty. Mostly primates lead an arboreal lifestyle. They keep in small groups. Support daily activity. These are omnivorous animals. The tendency to herbivory or carnivory depends on the habitat, the type of monkey and the time of year.

Since there are a lot of primate species and, sometimes, they are quite distant from each other, we will consider the habitats of primate families. From zoology, we only recall: genera are distinguished within families, and species within a genus.

Chaintails, or capuchins

The most numerous variety, in which eleven genera are distinguished (howler monkeys, jumpers, saki, woolly, squirrel monkeys and others).

Chain-tailed monkeys are small to medium-sized higher primates. All members of the capuchin family have a long tail covered with hair. In some species, this part of the body is capable of touch. The front part of the head is shortened, the nostrils are well separated from each other, the eyes are large with developed eyelids. The hairline of capuchins is one-color, rather thick.

Chain-tailed monkeys are good at jumping and running through trees. They feed mainly on vegetation. But they also eat insects, bird eggs and other small animals. The forelimbs are used to obtain food. Their muzzle is able to express emotions.

Capuchin distribution area - South America east of the Andes (from 27 degrees south latitude), Argentina north through Central America to 23 degrees northern latitude in Mexico.

Monkeys

The family includes eight genera (macaques, proboscis, baboons, mangabeys and others). They have small and medium sizes. Some species have a tail, some do not. The physique of the monkeys is also different: from graceful and light to rather heavy.

The forelimbs are slightly longer than the hind limbs. The hairline is usually long and silky. The entire body is covered with wool, excluding the ischial part, face, soles and hind limbs.

Monkeys live in various places: jungle, open plains, mangrove swamps, rocky places. Almost all members of the family lead an arboreal lifestyle, macaques are terrestrial and arboreal, baboons are terrestrial. Monkeys are diurnal animals. At night, they nest on rocks, trees, or in caves.

The distribution area covers Southeast Asia, Arabian Peninsula and Africa (where lions live). On the European continent, they are found only in Gibraltar.

Arms

A family with only one species. Monkeys are small in size, have an elongated, slender body, a rounded head with a shortened facial region. The coat is coarse, dark brown or black.

Arms live in forests, bamboo thickets and mangroves. They lead mainly an arboreal lifestyle. They support nocturnal activity, and during the day they sleep in hollows or tree crowns. The main diet is insects and their larvae.

Habitat: Madagascar. The species is very small, therefore it is listed in the Red Book.

Tarsiers

The family is represented by one genus and two species. It is a transitional species between lemurs and lower apes. Distinctive features:

• small size (from 28 to 40 cm, tail - from 6 to 27 cm);
• maximum weight - 150 g;
• large, very mobile head (it can turn almost 180 degrees);
• short muzzle;
• huge, bulging eyes that do not fit into the cranial orbit;
• strongly developed calcaneal department;
• velvety wool of a grayish or reddish-brown hue;
• long, rod-shaped tail with a brush at the end;
• feed on animals (insects, small vertebrates, lizards, birds and their eggs).

Habitat - Southeast Asia. Moreover, each species occupies certain islands of the Philippine, Malay and Sunda archipelagos. Tarsiers choose hard-to-reach jungles.

Dwarf lemurs

The maximum size of these monkeys is 460 g. Species living in the eastern rainforests have a reddish-brown hue, in the western dry forests they have a gray back. Dwarf lemurs live in all types of forests on the island of Madagascar.

These are nocturnal animals that prefer an arboreal lifestyle. Dwarf lemurs build globular nests from leaves or use natural voids in trees. The main diet is fruits and vegetables.

Gibbon

Characteristic features of the family:

• body length - from 45 to 90 cm;
• weight - 8-13 kg;
• graceful body with strongly elongated forelimbs;
• there is a small ischial callus;
• thick hairline;
• the color varies from black or brown to cream or whitish.

Gibbons live in dense tropical forests. They prefer an arboreal lifestyle. The main food is leaves and fruits.

The distribution area occupies Assam, Burma, the Indochina Peninsula, Hainan, Thailand, Tenasserim, the Malay Peninsula, the islands of Java, Sumatra, Kalimantan and Mentawai.

anthropoid

There are small, medium and large sizes. They don't have a tail. The minimum weight is five kilograms, the maximum is three hundred. Massive build, long forelimbs and short hind limbs. Rounded head with a prominent facial region. Well developed brain.

Humanoids are inhabitants of tropical forests. They are diurnal, most of which they spend in trees. Distribution area - Southeast Asia and adjacent islands, Equatorial Africa.

galago

These nocturnal animals are active jumpers. They feed on fruits, fruits and invertebrates. Galago live only in Africa, but in various territories: from dry places with thorny bushes to tropical forests.

Marmosets

The smallest of higher primates. Very mobile tree monkeys. They are active during the day and sleep in tree cavities at night.

The main diet is insects, birds, juicy fruits and seeds. They are distributed mainly in South America. Found in Colombia, Panama, Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, Ecuador.

How long do monkeys live?

Life expectancy in different families of primates is different. So, chain-tailed lived in captivity up to twenty-five years (about as long as tigers live). The life expectancy of monkeys in captivity is thirty to forty years. Arms, on the other hand, managed to live only up to nine years.

Tarsiers in captivity survive with difficulty, do not breed. Live in wild nature lasts up to twelve years. Most of the species in this family are now extinct. The main threat is habitat destruction. Extinction threatens and dwarf lemurs. Today these animals are listed in the Red Book.

The maximum lifespan of a gibbon in captivity is twenty-three years. But humanoids are long-livers. Life expectancy in captivity is forty-six years. Unfortunately, the number of anthropoids in their natural habitat is rapidly declining. The result of human persecution is ten thousand gorillas and two and a half thousand orangutans.

How many species of monkeys live on our planet, what do they eat, what are the features of their life? We read about all this and watch TV shows with pleasure. And this is not surprising, because we are descended from a common ancestor. We have a lot of similarities, not only in appearance and skeletal structure, but also in behavior.

What types of monkeys are there?

Zoologists define two groups of primates, and these animals are classified according to them. They are divided into New World and Old World primates. The first group includes monkeys living in Central and South America, and the second - in Asia and Africa. And each group has its own distinctive features. New World monkeys have a tail with which they can hold on to branches while moving through trees, and a wide nose. The African and Asian primates very often there is no tail, but even if it is, the animals do not use it as some kind of fifth limb, their nose is narrow. These two groups include more than one hundred and sixty species of monkeys.

Primates of South and Central America

The following monkeys (species) live in this area: monkeys, tamarins, capuchins, squirrel monkeys (56 species), owl and night monkeys, titi, sakis and Uakaris (41 species), howler monkeys, spider and woolly monkeys.

African and Asian primates

These continents are home to the largest number of primates - more than 135 species. If you list all kinds of monkeys, the list will be huge. They are combined into broader categories: baboons, thin-bodied, colobus, mandrills, macaques. There is another category that includes the following types of great apes: gorilla, chimpanzee, orangutan, bonobo (pygmy chimpanzee) and gibbon.

tamarins

These monkeys belong to the marmoset family. They live in the warmest regions of South America: Brazil, Costa Rica, the Tamarin basin is very easy to distinguish from other monkeys by the main characteristic distinctive feature are whiskers, although there are also beardless representatives of this species. Some actually have lion's mane. And because of their very unusual appearance, these animals are constantly hunted - poachers catch tamarins for sale on the black market. That is why this species is threatened with extinction.

In length, the body of a tamarin reaches from eighteen to thirty-five centimeters, with a tail - from twenty-three to forty-four centimeters, they weigh up to a kilogram. If you list the types of small monkeys, then tamarins will head this list. Their main habitat is the highlands of Brazil. In these places, the monkeys feel great: soft humid climate, abundance of food. Tamarins live in small groups of 5-10 individuals, so it is easier for them to find food and defend themselves from predators. At night they sleep on tall trees, and with the onset of the morning they begin to lead an active lifestyle: they look for food, look after each other.

Tamarins are omnivores - they are happy to eat both lizards, snails, insects, bird eggs, and plant foods - tree leaves, fruits, nuts and nectar. The food obtained is equally distributed among all members of the flock. If a stranger gets into their territory, then they all kick him out together, making frightening grimaces. The young are taken care of by the whole group. Toddlers up to four months of age constantly move on the back of their father. The monkeys talk to each other all the time, thereby informing each other about the food found and about the approach of the enemy.

Monkeys

They belong to the monkey family. These are very small and funny monkeys. Types of monkeys: real and green, hussar, talapoin and others (23 in total). The body size is usually small (like a cat), the coat is thick and very soft. The color of these monkeys is very diverse: olive, gray-green, light gray, brown, red, blue, black. The muzzles are slightly elongated, some representatives of this species have mustaches, sideburns and beards. The tail is usually twice as long as the body. Ischial calluses are small.

These primates live mainly in forests. Monkeys feed on both plant foods and animals. The diet includes young tree branches and leaves, fruits, succulent grass, insects and small vertebrates. Monkeys flee from enemies. It should be noted that greatest danger they are made up of people who fish them for sale. Monkeys are well tamed, but for this you need to take cubs. An adult monkey, once in captivity, is practically impossible to train.

capuchins

This one combines more than thirty subspecies. The species of these primates form four groups. These monkeys live in Brazil and Honduras. Most time spent on the tops of tall trees. The body length of the animal reaches fifty centimeters. The head is round, with prominent cheekbones. The color of the muzzle is usually pink or white. On the top of the head there is a black crest, similar to a hood (in fact, because of this similarity, the animal got its name).

Primates live in groups of 10 to 30 individuals. Together they get food, defend themselves from enemies and take care of their offspring. Capuchins are omnivorous: they eat both plant and animal food. It should be noted that these monkeys are very smart. They can crack nuts with a stone, beat fruits on tree branches. Having caught, they clean off the mucus from it, wiping it on a tree. For up to three months, capuchin cubs spend all the time on their mother's back, crawling onto their chest to feed on milk. From the age of six months, they begin to lead a more independent lifestyle, eat adult food, but do not move far from their mother.

howler monkeys

Howler monkeys are the largest primates in the New World. They are the size of a dog. These monkeys have a long and very tenacious tail, which they constantly use when moving through the trees.

The body of the primate is covered with thick but short hair. Long hair only on the cone-shaped head. The jaw protrudes forward, somewhat similar to a dog's. The neck is very short, so it seems that it is absent altogether. These primates spend most of their lives in trees. During the day they climb under the very tops, where they look for food, and at night they go down lower, settling for the night in the dense branches of small trees. Howler monkeys are very afraid of water, as they absolutely cannot swim.

Monkeys feed on tree buds, leaves, succulent shoots and fruits. Howler monkeys unite in flocks, which number from five to forty individuals. The female, as a rule, gives birth to one cub, which she feeds up to 18 months. Young and childless females help to look after the baby.

Baboons

The second name is yellow baboon. The length of the body reaches seventy-five centimeters, and the length of the tail is about sixty centimeters. The color of the coat is yellow - hence the name of the primate. Baboons live in East and Central Africa (in mountainous and steppe regions). They eat, like most primates, plant and animal food. The diet of baboons includes bulbs, succulent grass, fruits, nuts, insects, lizards, bird eggs, etc.

Baboons never live alone. The group includes up to eighty individuals. There is a clear hierarchy in the pack, several adult males dominate. In case of danger, they come to each other's aid. Friendly relations are established between males and offspring. The mature female cubs remain in the pack, but the young males are forced to leave. Interestingly, often herds of ungulates join a flock of yellow baboons. The fact is that baboons have a very sharp eyesight, so they can warn of danger in time.

Mandrills

This is the most large view primates that do not belong to the group of great apes. They live in West Africa. Sexually mature males have a very beautiful and bright color. They have a bright pink nose and stripes on the muzzle. blue color. Females and young males do not have such a bright color. The weight of males sometimes reaches fifty-four kilograms. The females are much smaller.

The diet of primates includes both vegetable and animal food. Mandrills eat more than one hundred and thirteen species of plants.

These monkeys live in families, which include one male and ten to fifteen females. Each family is assigned a territory of fifty square meters, which they mark with an odorous secret. Pregnancy of females lasts two hundred and twenty days. Babies are born from April to December, at this time there is a lot of food, so the females have time to feed them. The bond between mother and calf lasts a very long time. Until the age of three, the baby comes to spend the night with his mother.

Gorillas

Gorillas are the largest great apes. These primates live in Africa. Until recently, the habitat of these monkeys was difficult to access. But the natives always knew about the neighborhood of these animals and tried not to meet them, believing that they have a ferocious disposition.

The growth of gorillas reaches almost two meters, and weight - from one hundred and forty to two hundred kilograms. The body has square shape. The color of wool and skin is black. As males age, the fur on their backs turns gray. Like all primates, gorillas are diurnal. These monkeys feed exclusively on plant foods. They prefer stems and leaves, but fruits make up a small proportion of the diet.

Gorillas have a very calm, even phlegmatic character, despite their intimidating appearance. The female mates only with the leader of the herd, the pregnancy lasts eight and a half months. At first, the cub rides on the mother's back, and then walks side by side, holding on to her fur. Life expectancy is thirty to thirty-five years, but some individuals live for half a century.

The rarest types of monkeys

Man is very careless about the environment. Many animals were on the verge of extinction, including monkeys. Some species include such a small number of individuals that scientists around the world are sounding the alarm. Thus, the Society for the Protection of Animals took custody of drills - primates that are listed in the Red Book. The population of these animals has no more than ten thousand individuals. All monkeys (species do not matter) are exterminated by man at a catastrophic rate. And if this continues, the planet may lose these wonderful animals.

Pets

Currently, a domestic monkey is not at all uncommon. Many pet stores sell these exotic animals. But it should be borne in mind that not all types of primates take root well at home. Here are some types of domestic monkeys that adapt well to captivity: tamarins, monkeys, gibbons, marmosets, capuchins. These primates are unpretentious in content, but certain rules must be followed. So, they should have a spacious cage, proper nutrition. In no case do not hit the animal and do not shout at it, otherwise it will close in itself, be aggressive and boring. AT bad conditions monkeys die very quickly.