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Guatemalan howler monkey - ALOUATTA PIGRA
Possibly Endangered
Class: Animals with Milk Glands (Mammalia)
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."
Description: The howler monkeys are the largest of the group of platyrrhine (flatnosed) monkeys (named after their widely separated nostrils). It is covered with a long, silky coat of black fur, which is longest on its throat, hiding the monkey's prominent vocal organ. Its legs and arms are long but stout, and its tail is prehensile. The thumbs and big toes are opposable to the other fingers and toes. Length of head and body two to three feet, tail likewise two to three feet, and weight 15 to 20 lbs.
Location: Southern Central America.
Habitat: Arboreal. Tropical forests.
Behavior: This howler monkey usually lives in groups ranging in number up to 30 individuals of both sexes and all ages. Although group territories overlap, the strongest male, and sometimes all the males together, demarcate the space around the group with their howls. This monkey is mainly active in the morning and the evening, but can also remain busy throughout the day. At night it emits its distinctive howl which can be heard up to two miles away. It feeds on fruit (especially figs) and leaves.
Reproduction: Gestation lasts about 140 days, after which the female gives birth to a single young, which she carries about clinging to the fur on her back for almost a whole year.
Go to the Primates Page to learn more about the other man-like animals.
Go to the Index to compare the various monkeys found in America Zoo.
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