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Baboon - PAPIO HAMADRYAS

Class: Animals with Milk Glands (Mammalia)
Subclass: True Mammals (Eutheria)
Order: First Order Mammals (Primatea)
Family: Cercopithecidae.

The word "Baboon": "Baboon" probably comes from French "babuin," which means a "gaping face."

Location: Southern Africa.

Habitat: Terrestrial. Rocky terrain in savannas, or cliffs at the seashore.

Description: The baboon, although a large monkey, is quite slender. Its coarse coat is dark olive-green, with the underside slightly paler and often bare. The calluses at the base of the tail are small and gray. The face has an elongated muzzle with a very marked angle where the nose meets the forehead. The length of the head and body can reach up to 40 inches plus another 27 inches for its tail. It can weigh up to 100 lbs, with females somewhat smaller.

Behavior: Baboons live in large groups, numbering up to 200 individuals, in which there is a strict hierarchical order. The size of the group depends on the availability of food and varies from habitat to habitat. When the group is on the move it can travel up to six miles a day. The young males take up positions to the front and rear of the group, with the adult males remaining in the middle with the females and young. If attacked, all the males will engage in fierce combat. Their last form of defense is to flee into trees. Each group occupies a different territory in which it moves about in search of food. Baboons eat early in the day and at dusk, feeding mainly on plant matter, but also eating small mammals and birds.

Reproduction: Unknown.