Macibears
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| JA Allen , 1876 |
The bassaricyon or Olingos ( Bassaricyon ) are in Central and South America living genus of Procyonidae (Procyonidae). The name of the genus is derived from its similarity to the Makis . The genus includes four species, the best known is the Central American Makibär ( Bassaricyon gabbii ), which is also called "Olingo".
description
Makibears are elongated, short-legged animals with a long tail. Their short, soft fur is grayish or brown in color on the upper side, the underside is lighter, light yellow or white. The face is characterized by the pointed snout, the small, rounded ears and the relatively large eyes. The tail is bushy and has dark ringlets. In contrast to their closest relative, the wrapped bear , maci bears cannot use them as a prehensile tail. The animals reach a head body length of 35 to 48 centimeters, a tail length of 40 to 48 centimeters and a weight of 1 to 1.5 kilograms. Because of their strong smell, the Makibears are called Olingos in South America . This is a derivation of the word oliente , which means something like malodorous .
Distribution area and habitat
The range of the macibears extends from Nicaragua to Bolivia and northern Brazil . Their habitat are tropical rainforests up to 2000 meters above sea level and cloud forests up to 2750 meters above sea level ( Bassaricycon neblina ).
Way of life
Makibears are nocturnal tree dwellers that rarely come to the ground. During the day they sleep in a leaf-lined nest in a tree hollow, at night they go in search of food. They are excellent climbers and can jump well. They live solitary or in pairs, but sometimes socialize with owl monkeys , wrapped bears or possums .
food
Macibears feed mainly on fruits, but also eat carnal food such as insects and small vertebrates to a greater extent than wrapped bears .
Reproduction
Not much is known about the reproduction of the Makibears. After a gestation period of around 75 days, a single young animal is usually born. This opens the eyes at one month, starts eating solid food at two months and reaches sexual maturity at around two years of age. Life expectancy in the wild is estimated at around 10 years, animals in human care can live to be 25 years.
Systematics and types
The macibears together with the wrapped bears form the subfamily Potosinae within the small bears . After a revision of the genus by the American zoologist Kristofer Helgen and colleagues, four species of Makibear are recognized today.
- The Makibär ( Bassaricyon alleni ) lives in South America east of the Andes (from Colombia to Guyana in the east and Bolivia in the south).
- The Chocó-Makibär ( Bassaricyon medius ) occurs in Colombia and Ecuador west of the Andes and in the east of Panama .
- The Central American Maki bear ( Bassaricyon gabbii ) occurs from northern Nicaragua via Costa Rica to the western Panamanian province of Chiriquí .
- The Andean Makibär ( Bassaricyon neblina ) lives in the cloud forests of the northern Andes.
The family relationships are shown in the following cladogram :
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literature
- Ronald M. Nowak: Walker's Mammals of the World . Johns Hopkins University Press, 1999 ISBN 0801857899
- Don E. Wilson & Russel Mittermeier (Eds.) Handbook of the Mammals of the World Volume 1: Carnivores. Lynx Edicions. 2009. p. 525. ISBN 978-84-96-553-49-1
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Kristofer M. Helgen , Miguel Pinto, Roland Kays, Lauren Helgen, Mirian Tsuchiya, Aleta Quinn, Don Wilson, Jesus Maldonado: Taxonomic revision of the olingos (Bassaricyon), with description of a new species, the Olinguito. ZooKeys 324 (2013): Special issue: 1-83. doi : 10.3897 / zookeys.324.5827
