Visit our Zoo Gift Shop One-stop shopping for animal lovers!

Black-and-white colobus monkey - COLOBUS GUEREZA

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." "Colobus" is unknown.

Location: Central Africa.

Habitat: Forests, especially riverine.

Description: This colobus is a large creature. Its coat is basically black, with white running from its shoulders down the sides of its back to its tail. The callused areas on its hindquarters are surrounded by a broad white ring. The tail, which varies in shape from subspecies to subspecies, is black at the base, becoming fairly consistently white. The many subspecies of this colobus are determined on the basis of the tail and color of the coat. Length of head and body up to 30 in, tail about 32 in, weight up to 24 lbs.

Behavior: This arboreal monkey rarely descends to the ground except to obtain salts and water plants from swamps. It moves with great ease among the highest treetops in the forest, making spectacular leaps between branches. The color of the coat camouflages this monkey effectively in the foliage, and it can stay silent for hours if need be in the event of danger. It lives in territorial groups of about seven or so individuals, but with only one adult male. It is exclusively vegetarian, feeding on leaves and fruit.

Reproduction: Unknown.

Note: Populations of this species were much reduced in the 19th century by relentless hunting for its highly prized fur.