mandrill
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Mandrill ( mandrillus sphinx ) |
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| ( Linnaeus , 1758) |
The mandrill ( Mandrillus sphinx ) is a primate of the family Cercopithecidae . It lives in the tropical rainforests of Central Africa and is known for its red-blue colored areas on the face and buttocks, which make it the most colorful of all mammals.
features
Mandrills have a stocky build with a large head and long, strong limbs. Arms and legs are almost the same length, which is beneficial to the frequent movement on the ground. The animals reach a head body length of 61 to 76 centimeters, the tail is only a short, 5 to 7 centimeters long stub. In the four-legged corridor they reach a shoulder height of 51 centimeters. Males reach an average of around 25 kilograms and are therefore twice as heavy as females, which reach 11.5 kilograms. The maximum weight is 54 kilograms; so are mandrills to the great apes , the largest primates. The thick fur is olive green, the belly is yellowish-gray. The buttocks region is hairless and colored purple or reddish.
The head is large and has the elongated snout typical of many baboons . The nose is bright red in males, but blackish in females and young animals. Six bony, blue-colored furrows run along the nasal bone on each side, from which the outdated generic name Jawfurchenpaviane is derived. The red color of the nose is due to the skin tissue with a high blood supply; the almost artificial blue is caused by the refraction of light, which is based on the structure of the collagen in the skin. There is a yellowish beard under the face, next to it the head is framed by a mop of hair and a shoulder mane. The facial coloring of the females is generally paler and less conspicuous, the dominant male is also more brightly colored than the subordinate ones. The canines also have a sexual dimorphism , while those of the males are significantly longer and can reach 6.5 centimeters.
distribution and habitat
Mandrills live in central Africa. Its range includes southern Cameroon - the Sanaga River forms the northern limit of its habitat -, Equatorial Guinea , western Gabon and the southwest of the Republic of the Congo . Their habitat are densely vegetated tropical rainforests.
Way of life
Activity time and movement
Like all Old World monkeys , mandrills are diurnal, but have a lunch break. The adult animals, especially the males, usually stay on the ground, where they move with a four-footed gait. Young animals and lighter females also look for food in trees. All animals retreat into the trees when they sleep. Despite great flexibility in the choice of food, excursions into the sparse and low secondary forest, the surrounding bushland and the farmers' plantings are becoming more and more common because there are fewer and fewer large and contiguous forest areas.
Social behavior
The observations on social behavior are inconsistent, there are reports of harem groups with only one male as well as multi-male groups. Presumably, a fission-fusion structure prevails, which means that they live in larger herds of up to 200 animals, which split up into smaller harem groups for foraging and come together again seasonally. In addition to one male, these harem groups include around 5 to 10 females and their young animals. There are also often solitary males.
The groups have relatively large areas of up to 50 km², the daily forays are 1.5 to 4.5 kilometers long. When eating quietly, the male usually stays at the rear of the group; in the event of a threat, it moves to the front.
If there are several males in a group, only the dominant one has the bright facial coloring, a visual ornament . Fights between the males for dominance in a group are often carried threats (such as the presentation of the canines) and other Imponiergehabe discharged.
communication
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Mandrills communicate through visual and acoustic signals, through smells and touch. The bright coloration of the dominant males presumably has a signal function when leading the group in the dark forest. When an animal is excited, the coloring of the face increases. Gestures are also known: presenting the canine teeth is a threatening gesture, violent hitting the floor expresses anger. Several sounds are known, including grunting and crowing sounds when eating, a cry of alarm, and a two-part grunt with which the dominant male gathers the group around him. Mutual grooming also plays a role in communication.
nutrition
Mandrills are omnivores , but they mainly eat fruits and seeds. They also eat leaves, mushrooms and roots, but also insects and occasionally small vertebrates such as frogs , lizards and even duikers . In general, the males look for food on the ground, the females and juveniles in the trees.
Reproduction
If there are several males in a group, usually only the dominant one breeds with the females. Mating takes place between July and October, and most of the young are born between December and April. The gestation period is around six months, usually a single young is born. This weighs around 600 grams and initially has a black coat. Sexual maturity occurs at four to eight years of age. Animals in human care can live to be 40 years.
Mandrill and people
etymology
The term "mandrill" was borrowed from the English word of the same name in the 18th century . This was probably taken from a West African language and originally referred to the chimpanzee . The specific epithet sphinx is derived from the sphinx , an ancient demon.
Danger
Because it lives in the rainforest, accurate estimates of the species' population are very difficult. The main threat is, on the one hand, hunting for their meat: their size makes them a worthwhile target for hunters and easy to find thanks to their loud communication. On the other hand, the clearing of the forests is increasingly restricting their habitat. The species is classified as endangered ( vulnerable ) by the IUCN . One of the most important protected areas for the mandrill is the Lopé National Park in Gabon. Other protected areas in Gabon are also home to mandrills, including the Wonga Wongué protected area .
Conservation
In the Weltzooverband WAZA out species database ISIS 2007 a total of 493 mandrills were registered as world Zoobestand. There is no international stud book for this flagship species of rainforest protection. But since 1985 the European Zoo Association EAZA has been running a European Conservation Breeding Program (EEP) for the mandrill. The EEP coordinator for the approximately 200 specimens is Ilma Bogsch at Budapest Zoo. The Los Angeles Zoo runs a separate conservation breeding program for the USA and Canada, and Erik Terdal at Northeastern State University, Oklahoma , runs the North American Studbook. Jason Hakof at the Adelaide Zoo maintains the Australasian Studbook . The largest zoo group with currently 27 specimens lives in the British Colchester Zoo.
Mandrills in Art
Franz Marc painted the painting "The Mandrill" around 1913. Bruno Apitz named SS-Unterscharführer Sommer in his novel Nackt unter Wölfen because of his cruelty and torture practices as Mandrill. In the Disney film The Lion King , the character Rafiki is an old, wise mandrill.
Systematics
The mandrill's closest relative is the drill , whose face is largely black in color. Together they form the genus of the mandrill-like ( mandrillus ). Contrary to earlier assumptions, the mandrill-like are not particularly closely related to the genus of the baboons ( Papio ); their sister group is rather the white-eyed mangabians ( Cercocebus ).
literature
- Peter C. Alden et al: Collins guide to African Wildlife. HarperCollins Publishers, London, 2004, ISBN 0-00-719811-6 .
- T. Bettinger, J. Wallis, A. Morris (1995): Reproductive parameters of mandrills at the Tulsa Zoo. In: Zoo Biology. 14, 2, 1995, ISSN 0733-3188 , pp. 115-121.
- Thomas Geissmann : Comparative Primatology. Springer-Verlag, Berlin et al. 2003, ISBN 3-540-43645-6 .
- Ronald M. Nowak: Walker's Mammals of the World. 6th edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 1999, ISBN 0-8018-5789-9 .
Individual evidence
- ^ Friedrich Kluge, Elmar Seebold: Etymological dictionary of the German language. 24th edition, 2002
Web links
- Information at Animal Diversity Web
- Mandrillus sphinx in the Red List of Threatened Species of the IUCN 2006. Posted by: T. Butynski & Members of the Primate Specialist Group, 2000. Retrieved on 6 May, 2006.
- International Directory of Primatology: Taxon Advisory Groups, Species Coordinators, and Studbook Keepers
- Datasheet at WAZA.org