Niramin - Feb 3rd, 2016

The blue monkey or crowned monkey (Cercopithecus mitis) is a rather large animal - the primate of the genus Cercopithecus, lives in humid shady tropical African forests. Male individuals reach 70 cm, are distinguished by long fangs and characteristic sideburns, have a long tail (up to 90 cm). Females are much smaller, body length up to 50 cm.

A feature of this species of monkeys is a bluish coat color. Above the eyes, a strip of hair with a white border grows upright, resembling a crown in appearance. Hence the second name of the species is the crowned monkey.

In natural natural environment these animals form flocks, consisting overwhelmingly of females (up to 20-30 pieces). At the head of the herd there may be one, sometimes two males. Monkeys move along the branches of trees. Pregnancy lasts six months, there is one cub in the litter. The baby immediately after birth clings tightly to the wool and lives for six months under the protection of the mother. Adulthood occurs at 3.5 years.

Young females grow up and live in a herd with their mother, while males create their own herd. Sometimes monkeys create temporary communities in a mixed herd with other species of monkeys, in particular, with chimpanzees.

Crowned monkeys usually feed on plant foods: fruits, shoots, leaves, but they can catch insects and amphibians, small mammals.

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Photo: Blue monkey.

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Monkey crowned, or blue

The crowned, or blue, monkey is a shy and cautious monkey. She spends most of her life on the highest branches in the crowns of trees, in thickets along river banks or in bamboo forests. Crowned monkeys keep in herds. Animals are most active in the morning and evening time. During the hot afternoon hours, they tend to rest.

Isolated populations of crowned monkeys live in forests in southern and eastern Africa. The range of these monkeys reaches eastern parts South Africa in Zimbabwe, Kenya and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Habits: females are kept in herds, headed by a leader. Single males live alone. Lifespan: 20-30 years in captivity. Puberty: from 5-6 years old.

Crowned monkeys spend most of their lives in trees. They belong to one of largest species families. All monkeys have a good soft coat, this also applies to the crowned monkey. characteristic feature The crowned, or blue, marmoset is its black coat. In the diet of this shy inhabitant African jungle includes mainly fruits. In addition to plant foods, these animals eat lizards, and sometimes birds and even small mammals. The behavior of blue monkeys is no different from the behavior of others known to researchers species, they bring food to their mouths with one or two paws. Farmers and foresters consider monkeys to be pests because they destroy crops and strip the bark from young trees.

The mating season of crowned monkeys depends on the territory in which one or another population of these monkeys lives. In the tropics, mating occurs during the dry season, while monkeys that live in the mountains mate in the fall. So far about marital behavior there is little information about crowned monkeys, since these monkeys lead a secret life. It is known that when there are two females ready for mating in the herd, for some time another male joins such a group, which usually leads a solitary lifestyle in another period. The female brings cubs once in 2 years. The female gives birth to one cub, which immediately after the appearance clings tightly to the wool. In addition, a tenacious tail allows him to hold on to his mother. The young crowned monkey very quickly moves to the mother's back, and, having matured, takes short walks, during which he learns to gather food, move along the branches and get acquainted with other members of the herd. Young males leave the group when they reach sexual maturity.

Interesting facts from the life of an animal

Newborn baby crowned monkeys sleep most of the time, but later they begin to actively explore everything around. Their mothers hold them by their tails so they don't wander too far.
The crowned, or blue, monkey is able to jump from branch to branch in a dense forest and thus move in the crowns of trees much faster than a common person runs on the ground on two legs.

Crowned or blue monkey(Cercopithecus mitis)

Class - mammals
Order - primates
Family - marmosets

Genus - monkeys

Appearance

The average size is from 50 to 65 cm in length (excluding the tail, which has similar dimensions to the body). Females weigh just over 4 kg, while males can weigh up to 8 kg. The face is naked, usually dark in color, infrequently blue, the body has well-developed muscles. They were named crowned by the white stripe white fur, which grows above the eyebrows and is directed forward. White whiskers are well developed in males. Males are larger than females, and their fangs are slightly larger.

The general color is gray, the limbs are darker. Juveniles show reddish-brown indistinct spots, which do not appear in adults.

Habitat

Found in tropical forests Central, Eastern and Southern Africa, including the Congo Basin. Blue monkeys prefer to stay in moist, shady forests with large bodies of water and tall trees who provide food and lodging.

Lifestyle

They live in groups of 6 to 30, sometimes up to 200 individuals. Usually such a group is headed by an adult male. The herd of monkeys is less organized than that of baboons and macaques, adults are more gentle with the cubs. Monkeys spend the day in search of food, they eat leaves, young shoots, fruits, occasionally insects and other small animals.

reproduction

Reproduction is year-round, pregnancy is 5 months, 1 cub is born. Females are able to bear offspring if there is enough food. The age of sexual maturity of females and males is 3 years. Females feed the young with milk for 6 months. The maximum life span is probably around 20 years.

Monkeys are very smart and sociable creatures, they have a lot in common with humans, but in no case should such a pet be allowed to calmly walk around the house or apartment without human supervision. He is interested in everything, he wants to touch everything and even see what is inside, so he breaks everything that comes to hand.
First of all, for a monkey, it is necessary to provide for a sufficiently spacious and strong one, which is recommended to be made of strong wood, the front wall is usually made of metal rods. Connections with bolts or screws are not permitted.
A cage measuring 2x1.5x1.5 m is suitable. Monkeys usually lead very active image life, so the cage must contain various climbing devices. Most often, a trapezoid is installed for monkeys, which is a wooden shelf attached with strong ropes or chains. Can be mounted on a pole with a moving wheel or hung from the ceiling big ring metal or ebonite. The best entertainment for your pet there will be a mirror that is well nailed or glued, the frame for it must be made of hardwood. The mirror must be fixed motionless, otherwise a curious monkey can break it and then swallow the pieces.
The monkey is not a very clean animal. Therefore, the bottom of the cage should be covered with a layer of dry sawdust, preferably spruce. For feeding monkeys, feeders are usually used, water is given in drinkers. These devices do not have to be in the cage all the time.
For keeping monkeys, in addition to cages, they sometimes use enclosures or, much worse, keep them in poles. This device is a pole on which there is a horizontal platform used for walking and feeding the animal, as well as a place to sleep. This is probably the most cruel animal keeping, because in this case the monkey must be on a leash all the time. We recommend not to torture your pet, but still provide him with a good home. For example, enclosures are much more suitable for keeping monkeys. They are much more spacious than a cage and in them you can create conditions that are closest to natural. To do this, tree branches are placed in the aviary or various plants are planted.
Your pet needs to be walked periodically. To do this, they need to make a belt with a leash. It can be made from a soft but durable leather belt that will wrap around the body of the animal just below the shoulders. It is necessary to accustom the monkey to this belt from childhood and not to take it off even in the apartment.
The monkeys are fed twice a day, sometimes they can be given various fruits as rewards, but this should not be abused too much. Monkeys, like all primates, feed mainly on plant foods, prefer plant shoots, fruits, flowers and nuts. In addition to plant food you can add small insects, worms, sometimes even shellfish and crabs. It is recommended to give them boiled rice with milk and a white bun soaked in milk, and fruit should also be added; some favor boiled potatoes and vegetables in general (tomatoes, carrots, cabbage, beets, boiled corn). For almost all monkeys, watermelon is a delicacy. Very quickly monkeys get used to different exotic fruits, and if you give them often, then they completely refuse other food, so it is recommended to give bananas and oranges quite rarely. Very fond of monkeys useful for them onion(contains vitamin C), but since it is very corrosive to the eyes, they build interesting grimaces before using it. Sometimes they should be given cereal and legume seeds.
The amount of feed has great importance. Monkeys are very fond of food, often overeating. Everything that is given to them will find its use. If the stomach is already full, then they will fill the cheek pouches, and if there is still something left, then they will hide it in the most unpredictable places, and what, there is absolutely nowhere to go, can be scattered in a cage or in an apartment.
But, in general, monkeys are playful, funny and smart creatures. Having made yourself such a friend, you will certainly never be bored!

Among other animals that were lucky enough to escape the flood in the biblical ark was a pair of primates with an unusual coat color, thanks to which this species got its name: the blue monkey.

After a successful landing on Mount Ararat, they settled where it is always warm and there is a lot of food: in Africa. To see how the animals settled down, we will follow them.

Appearance

The wool of these beautiful animals is thick and rather soft. As mentioned above, they owe their name to a silvery-gray, olive or brown color, sometimes with a bluish tint. The limbs are much darker. The face is also dark, bluish, there is almost no hair on it.

Another hallmark is a light contrasting superciliary strip of fur resembling a diadem, thanks to which another name for this species appeared - the crowned monkey. In young individuals, red-brown spots are distinguishable on the coat, which gradually disappear with maturity.

"Gentlemen" of this species proudly wear lush sideburns. Their fangs are much larger than those of the "lady", and in size they exceed the weaker sex.

The length of the body, excluding the tail, in mature animals is 45-70 cm. Adult males weigh up to 8 kg, the weight of the female reaches 5-6 kg. The tail significantly exceeds the length of the body and sometimes reaches 1 meter. This valuable “application” for every blue monkey is rightfully considered its fifth limb, since it provides it with invaluable help every day:

  • Helps to jump to distant branches, acting as a steering wheel;
  • Serves as a balancer when moving in the crowns of trees;
  • Allows you to cling to branches and vines, minimizing the number of accidents from falling from a height.

Place and habitat

There are 7 subspecies of blue monkeys that can be found in eastern and central parts of Africa, in the territories of the states of Zimbabwe, Congo and Kenya, Angola and Uganda. They live in dense, moist evergreen and bamboo forests on high altitudes and rarely come down to earth. They usually settle near water bodies.

These primates are often targeted by hunters for their meat, which is popular with local tribes. In addition, they are considered pests because they can encroach on the crops of local farmers and strip the bark from young trees.

Another factor that negatively affects the survival of this species of primates in wild nature, is habitat loss due to deforestation. They have and natural enemies like snakes, predator birds and leopards.

But despite everything, the population of blue monkeys is still large and stable. Fortunately, they are not included in the list of endangered animal species.

The life span of crowned marmosets is about 20 years in the wild. In captivity, the maximum age of a long-lived monkey, who lived 37 years, was recorded.

lifestyle and habits. Community

Everyone who was lucky enough to meet a blue monkey in the wild notes their extraordinary fearfulness and caution. Seeing a person, the animals immediately try to hide in a dense forest. They are active during the day, especially in the morning and evening. During the hot daytime hours, they rest, hiding in the shade.

They live in small flocks of 20-30 individuals, of which only one mature male, he is also the leader; the rest of the flock consists of several females with their offspring of different ages. When young males become adults, they leave the pack to create a new one around them. Females, most often, remain close to their mother all their lives.

Life in a pack involves the gradual socialization of the young. Scientists who monitor the life of these tribes note that babies try to keep their distance from adults, mature individuals, and willingly make contact with other cubs and young females who do not yet have their own offspring and who take care of them.

Little monkeys dare to approach females of the older generation only together with their mother.

Being social animals, crowned monkeys actively use communication tools, which can be conditionally divided into:

  • visual
  • Vocal
  • Tactile

With the help of active facial expressions and gestures, monkeys have learned to demonstrate some emotions well. For example, when expressing aggression, they stare at the opponent, pulling their ears back and opening their mouths, although their teeth remain covered with their lips. They can “add heat” and completely scare the enemy by jumping in place and waving their arms.

Frequencies and melodies are used by blue monkeys in order to

  • Designate the territory occupied by the family
  • Warn relatives of the danger
  • Assemble a dispersed squad
  • Show obedience

An important component of the monkey hostel is grooming. So familiar to everyone, picking by primates in each other's wool solves several problems at once:

  • Hygiene procedures
  • Appeasing an Aggressive Kindred
  • Establishing friendly relations with fellow tribesmen

Usually monkeys with a less significant role in the family are engaged in cleaning, however, they can substitute the back for grooming, expressing their humility. There were cases when a monkey occupied a leading position in a flock not due to strength, but having won favor with pleasant procedures for everyone.

Sometimes flocks of crowned marmosets ally with primates of other species, such as the red-tailed marmoset. Since they are looking for food in different tiers of the forest, there are no conflicts over the division, but this way the monkeys are better protected from predators. In addition, by forming a coalition, they can oppose other clans of primates.

reproduction

Blue monkeys reach the age of sexual maturity by 3-4 years. The mating period can be up to a year, depending on the region, with single males fighting family leaders to get the opportunity to mate.

Females produce offspring once every 2 - 3 years. Pregnancy lasts 5 months and ends with the birth of one cub. Births usually take place at night, in trees.

With tenacious fingers, a newborn immediately clings to the wool on the mother’s body, which also helps him to hold on with his tail (here is another important role this fifth limb). The baby is already covered with wool and immediately opens its eyes. He receives mother's milk during the first six months of life.

Nutrition

Blue monkeys are omnivores. Plant foods predominate in their daily diet, but animal proteins are also present. They are eating:

Being in the upper tier of the forest, they consume what grows on trees. But sometimes during the day they descend to the ground, and there they no longer pass by a snail or a lizard. In search of food, the entire herd moves within its territory.

Have you met such a monkey ??