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Proboscis monkey - NASALIS LARVATUS

Endangered

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

The word "Monkey": "Monkey" is of unknown derivation, but it may come from the old German story of "Reynard the Fox," in which the ape's son was named "Moneke." A "proboscis" is a nose used for eating (as an elephant uses its nose), but has evolved to mean any "large nose."

Location: Borneo in southeast Asia.

Habitat: Arboreal. Near waterways and in mangrove forests.

Description: The strangest feature of this monkey is its nose, which in the male adult is much enlarged and may hang down over the mouth. The female has a much smaller and upturned nose, although it is still longer than that of other species. The color of the coat varies from brown to pale reddish, and the lower parts of the body are gray or cream-colored. The limbs are relatively long, and the feet are well furred and have dark soles, with the second and third hind toes connected by a web of skin. This monkey is about two to two and one half feet long, with the tail adding another two or so feet. It weighs up to 50 lbs, with females about half this weight.

Behavior: The proboscis monkey eats leaves and the shoots of aquatic plants. It lives in loosely cohesive groups of 12 to 24 monkeys, and moves with great agility among the branches of trees. Most activity is early in the morning. It is a good swimmer. Loud nasal honks are emitted by the males and are given a particular resonance by the long proboscis, which straightens out during each honk. The flesh of the proboscis monkey is regarded as something of a delicacy and it is actively hunted by the natives of Borneo, but with little success, because these monkeys are wary and they flee at the slightest sign of danger.

Reproduction: Unknown.