Hooded Capuchin
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Hooded Capuchin ( Sapajus apella ) |
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| ( Linnaeus , 1758) |
The hooded capuchin or hooded capuchin ( Sapajus apella , Syn .: Cebus apella ) is a primate species from the genus of the capuchin monkey within the New World monkey .
features
Hooded capuchins reach a head body length of 40 to 44 centimeters and a tail length of up to 48 centimeters. With an average of 2.9 kilograms, males are significantly heavier than females, who reach an average of 2.1 kilograms. The fur of these animals is predominantly yellow-brown to reddish-brown in color, the arms, legs and tail are darker. The top of the head is also black, and above the ears there is a not always clearly visible head of hair, from which the animals owe their name. The black cheek stripes are characteristic. The coloring of the face varies from pink to brown.
distribution and habitat
Hooded capuchins are native to northern South America , especially the Amazon basin . Their distribution area includes southern Colombia , eastern Peru , northern Bolivia , large parts of northern and central Brazil , Guyana , Suriname and French Guiana as well as small peripheral areas in Ecuador and Venezuela . A small, isolated population lives on the Venezuelan Isla Margarita , which is around 800 kilometers away from the nearest stocks and may have been settled by humans. The habitat of this species is forests, although they are adaptable and can live in numerous forest types, from rainforests to mountain and savanna forests.
Lifestyle and diet
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Hooded capuchins are diurnal tree dwellers, in the branches they mainly move four-legged. The tail can be grasped and is mainly used when eating or when climbing down.
They live in groups of 10 to 20 animals, which consist of several males and females and the common offspring. Both sexes develop a hierarchy, with the exception of the alpha male, all other males are subordinate to the dominant female. The order of precedence comes into play, among other things, in access to food resources and in privileges in relation to reproduction.
The diet of these primates is flexible and depends on the habitat and the season. The most important food components are fruits, insects, leaves, buds and nectar. Vegetable food accounts for more than 80% of the animal food, and in addition to insects, they sometimes also eat small vertebrates (frogs, lizards or birds).
Reproduction
The impulse to mate comes from the female, who can basically choose her partner. Most of the young animals are conceived by the dominant male. After a gestation period of around five months, the female usually gives birth to a single young animal weighing around 210 grams. Not only the mother but also other group members take care of it. It is weaned after more than a year, and sexual maturity occurs after around four to five years.
Danger
Although hooded capuchins are hunted for their meat and made pets more frequently than other South American primates , they are not endangered species due to their adaptability and their large range.
However, the subspecies on Isla Margarita ( Sapajus apella margaritae ) requires special attention . Their total population is estimated at only 250 to 300, the IUCN lists them as critically endangered .
Systematics
The hooded capuchin is counted within the capuchin monkey group, which also includes the back stripe capuchin , the black capuchin , the yellow-breasted capuchin and the rediscovered golden capuchin . These species used to be grouped together with the hooded capuchin, but today they are mostly considered separately. Sometimes Sapajus macrocephalus is also separated as a separate species in the west of the distribution area.
literature
- Thomas Geissmann : Comparative Primatology. Springer-Verlag, Berlin a. a. 2003, ISBN 3-540-43645-6 .
- Don E. Wilson, DeeAnn M. Reeder (Eds.): Mammal Species of the World. A taxonomic and geographic Reference. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2005, ISBN 0-8018-8221-4 .
