Old World monkey is the common English name for a family of primates known taxonomically as the Cercopithecidae. Twenty-four genera and 138 species are recognized, making it the largest primate family. Old World monkey genera include baboons, red colobus and macaques. Common names for other Old World monkeys include the talapoin, guenon, colobus, douc, vervet, gelada, mangabey, langur, mandrill, surili (Presbytis), patas, and proboscis monkey. Phylogenetically, they are more closely related to apes than to New World monkeys. They diverged from a common ancestor of New World monkeys around 45 to 55 million years ago.
The purple-faced langur, also known as the purple-faced leaf monkey, is a species of Old World monkey that is endemic to Sri Lanka. The animal is a long-tailed arboreal species, identified by a mostly brown appearance, dark face and a very shy nature. The species was once highly prevalent, found in suburban Colombo and the "wet zone" villages, but rapid urbanization has led to a significant decrease in the population level of the monkeys. It had traditionally been classified within the lutung genus Trachypithecus but was moved to the genus Semnopithecus based on DNA evidence indicating that is it more closely related to the gray langurs.
The Cercopithecinae are a subfamily of the Old World monkeys, which comprises roughly 71 species, including the baboons, the macaques, and the vervet monkeys. Most cercopithecine monkeys are limited to sub-Saharan Africa, although the macaques range from the far eastern parts of Asia through northern Africa, as well as on Gibraltar.
The grey-cheeked mangabey, also known as the white-cheeked mangabey, is an Old World monkey found in the forests of Central Africa. It ranges from Cameroon down to Gabon. The grey-cheeked mangabey is a dark monkey, looking in shape overall like a small, hairy baboon. Its thick brown fur is almost black in its forest home, with a slightly rufus/golden mane around the neck. The sexes are similar, with the males slightly larger than the females.
The kipunji, also known as the highland mangabey, is a species of Old World monkey that lives in the highland forests of Tanzania. The kipunji has a unique call, described as a 'honk-bark', which distinguishes it from its relatives, the grey-cheeked mangabey and the black crested mangabey, whose calls are described as 'whoop-gobbles'.
The crested mangabeys are West African Old World monkeys belonging to the genus Lophocebus. They tend to have dark skin, eyelids that match their facial skin, and crests of hair on their heads. Another genus of mangabeys, Cercocebus, was once thought to be very closely related, so much so that all the species were placed in one genus. However, Lophocebus species are now understood to be more closely related to the baboons in genus Papio, while the Cercocebus species are more closely related to the mandrill. In 2006, the highland mangabey was moved from Lophocebus to a new genus, Rungwecebus.
Wolf's mona monkey, also called Wolf's guenon, is a colourful Old World monkey in the family Cercopithecidae. It is found in central Africa, primarily between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda. It lives in primary and secondary lowland rainforest and swamp forest.
The Uganda mangabey is a subspecies of the grey-cheeked mangabey, an Old World monkey, found only in Uganda and in the Minziro Forest Reserve, just over the border in Tanzania. Colin Groves upgraded the Ugandan population of this crested mangabey to the new species L. ugandae on 16 February 2007, but this is not widely accepted. This subspecies is significantly smaller than the other subspecies of grey-cheeked mangabey, with a shorter skull and smaller face. 2018 was the most recent year in which the International Union for Conservation of Nature assessed the conservation status of L. albigena ugandae, describing it as being of vulnerable.
The collared mangabey, also called red-capped mangabey and white-collared mangabey is a species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae of Old World monkeys. It formerly included the sooty mangabey as a subspecies. As presently defined, the collared mangabey is monotypic.
The red-eared guenon, also called red-eared monkey, or russet-eared guenon is a primate species in the family Cercopithecidae. It is native to subtropical and tropical moist lowland forests in Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List and is threatened by habitat loss, illegal bushmeat hunting and pet trade.
The lesser spot-nosed monkey, also known as the lesser spot-nosed guenon, lesser white-nosed guenon, or lesser white-nosed monkey, is a species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae. It is found in Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Togo, Guinea-Bissau, and possibly Senegal.
The crested mona monkey, also known as the crowned guenon, crowned monkey, golden-bellied guenon, or golden-bellied monkey,, is a species of African primate in the family Cercopithecidae found in west central Africa.
The Cross River bushbaby, also known as the Cross River squirrel galago, is a subspecies of prosimian primate in the family Galagidae which is endemic to a restricted area of West Africa. It is one of four species of squirrel galago in the genus Sciurocheirus.
The agile mangabey is an Old World monkey of the white-eyelid mangabey group found in swampy forests of Central Africa in Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon, Gabon, Central African Republic, Republic of Congo, and DR Congo. Until 1978, it was considered a subspecies of the Tana River mangabey. More recently, the golden-bellied mangabey has been considered a separate species instead of a subspecies of the agile mangabey.
The Sanje mangabey is a highly endangered Old World monkey of the white-eyelid mangabey group from the Eastern Arc Mountains in Tanzania. They are about 50–65 centimetres (20–26 in) in length, excluding the tail, and their body colour is greyish. Fruit makes up about 70% of their diet. They live in valley forests and on mountain slopes, but are mostly ground-dwelling, which makes them susceptible to hunting and poaching. Their habitat is being degraded, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed their conservation status as being "endangered".
Johnston's mangabey is a subspecies of the gray-cheeked mangabey, a crested mangabey in the family Cercopithecidae. It was elevated to full species status in 2007, alongside Osman Hill's mangabey and the Uganda mangabey, but is still generally considered as a subspecies.
The tufted gray langur, also known as Madras gray langur, and Coromandel sacred langur, is an Old World monkey, one of the species of langurs. This, like other gray langurs, is mainly a leaf-eating monkey. It is found in southeast India and Sri Lanka. It is one of three Semnopithecus species named after characters from The Iliad, S. hector and S. ajax being the others. In Sinhala it is known as හැලි වදුරා.
The red-tailed monkey, also known as the black-cheeked white-nosed monkey, red-tailed guenon, redtail monkey, or Schmidt's guenon, is a species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae.
