Tibetan macaque

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Tibetan macaque [1]
Emei shan.jinding.Old Tibetan macaque.jpg
An elderly female on Mount Emei, Sichuan, China
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Primates
Suborder: Haplorhini
Infraorder: Simiiformes
Family: Cercopithecidae
Genus: Macaca
Species:
M. thibetana
Binomial name
Macaca thibetana
Tibetan Macaque area.png
Tibetan macaque range

The Tibetan macaque (Macaca thibetana), also known as the Chinese stump-tailed macaque or Milne-Edwards' macaque, is a macaque species found from eastern Tibet east to Guangdong and north to Shaanxi in China. It has also been reported from northeastern India. [2] [3] This species lives in subtropical forests (mixed deciduous to evergreen) at elevations from 800 to 2,500 m (2,600 to 8,200 ft) above sea level.

Contents

Taxonomy

There are four recognized subspecies:

Physical description

The Tibetan macaque is the largest species of macaque and one of the largest monkeys found in Asia. Only the proboscis monkey and the larger species of gray langur come close to match their size among Asian monkeys. Males are the larger sex, commonly attain a weight of 13 to 19.5 kg (29 to 43 lb) and length of 61 to 71 cm (24 to 28 in) Females, in contrast, weigh 9 to 13 kg (20 to 29 lb) and measure 49 to 63 cm (19 to 25 in) long. The stump-like tail adds only 4 to 14 cm (1.6 to 5.5 in), with females having a considerably shorter tail. [4] [5] The fur is well-suited to the species' cold environments being long, dense and brown on the back with creamy-buff to grey coloration on the underparts. Some adults are quite dark brown on the back, while others are basically a sandy yellowish-brown color. They have a prominent, pale-buff beard and long whiskers, but have a hairless face. The face is pale pinkish in males but is a more vivid, reddish-pink in females. The infants have silver-and-black fur that changes to its adult color at the age of two. [6]

Behaviour

The Tibetan macaque lives in mixed sex groups. In their complex social system, females remain for life in their natal group, but males disperse shortly after their adolescence (at about 8 years old). Macaque societies are hierarchical, with higher-ranking males getting better access to the resources, namely food and sexually-receptive females. Alpha males dominate the group, being those that are typically large, strong and newly mature. As they age, males tend to gradually lose their social standing and are frequently subject to challenges for dominance from other males. Such conflicts are frequently quite violent and males may kill each other in battle. Studies of Tibetan macaques at Mount Emei and Huangshan Mountains, China, found the average tenure for an alpha male only lasted about one year. When troop size becomes quite large (in the 40 to 50 range) and competition grows over increasingly stretched resources, some individuals (males, females and juveniles) split from the main group to form a new, smaller group, known as 'fissioning', and move on to a different home range. Usually, it is the lowest-ranking individuals that will split from the main group. [6]

Females first breed at around five years of age. The gestation period is six months with a single offspring being produced at each pregnancy. Most infants being born in January and February. Young macaques are nursed for a year and may continue to do so longer if the female does not give birth again the following year. Males of the group may also be involved in alloparenting care.

This diurnal species spends most of its time on the ground, where it forages for leaves, fruit, grass and, to a lesser extent, flowers, seeds, roots and insects. When available, bamboo shoots, fruits and leaves are particularly favoured. [6]

Conservation

This species is classified as Near Threatened by the IUCN and is listed on Appendix II of the CITES list. Its main threats are all human-related. Principally, they are sensitive to habitat destruction, as they are tied closely to the forest. They are occasionally poisoned by herbicides and pesticides while eating and may catch diseases transmitted from humans. Illegal poaching may occur, with the flesh and the fur of the macaque being used. [6]

Related Research Articles

Macaque Genus of Old World monkeys

The macaques constitute a genus (Macaca) of gregarious Old World monkeys of the subfamily Cercopithecinae. The 23 species of macaques inhabit ranges throughout Asia, North Africa, and Gibraltar. Macaques are principally frugivorous, although their diet also includes seeds, leaves, flowers, and tree bark. Some species, such as the crab-eating macaque, subsist on a diet of invertebrates and occasionally small vertebrates. On average, southern pig-tailed macaques in Malaysia eat about 70 large rats each per year. All macaque social groups are matriarchal, arranged around dominant females.

Crab-eating macaque Species of mammal

The crab-eating macaque, also known as the long-tailed macaque, is a cercopithecine primate native to Southeast Asia. It is referred to as the cynomolgus monkey in laboratories. It has a long history alongside humans; it has been alternately seen as an agricultural pest, sacred animal in some temples, and more recently, the subject of medical experiments.

Old World monkey Family of mammals

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 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 55 million years ago.

Rhesus macaque Species of Old World monkey

The rhesus macaque is a species of Old World monkey. It is listed as least concern in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species in view of its wide distribution, presumed large population, and its tolerance of a broad range of habitats. It is native to South, Central, and Southeast Asia and has the widest geographic range of all non-human primates, occupying a great diversity of altitudes and a great variety of habitats, from grasslands to arid and forested areas, but also close to human settlements.

Barbary macaque

The Barbary macaque, also known as Barbary ape or magot, is a macaque species native to the Atlas Mountains of Algeria and Morocco along with a small population of uncertain origin in Gibraltar. It is one of the best-known Old World monkey species.

Japanese macaque The only nonhuman primate in Japan

The Japanese macaque, also known as the snow monkey, is a terrestrial Old World monkey species that is native to Japan. They get their name "snow monkey" because some live in areas where snow covers the ground for months each year – no other non-human primate is more northern-living, nor lives in a colder climate. Individuals have brownish grey fur, pinkish-red faces, and short tails. Two subspecies are known.

Lion-tailed macaque

The lion-tailed macaque, or the wanderoo, is an Old World monkey endemic to the Western Ghats of South India.

Celebes crested macaque

The Celebes crested macaque, also known as the crested black macaque, Sulawesi crested macaque, or the black ape, is an Old World monkey that lives in the Tangkoko reserve in the northeastern tip of the Indonesian island of Sulawesi (Celebes), as well as on smaller neighboring islands.

Arunachal macaque

The Arunachal macaque is a macaque native to Arunachal Pradesh in North-east India. It is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List. It was scientifically described in 2005.

Grivet

The grivet, also known as African green monkey and savannah monkey, is an Old World monkey with long white tufts of hair along the sides of its face. Some authorities consider this and all of the members of the genus Chlorocebus to be a single species, Cercopithecus aethiops. As here defined, the grivet is restricted to Ethiopia, Sudan, Djibouti, and Eritrea. In the southern part of its range, it comes into contact with the closely related vervet monkey and Bale Mountains vervet. Hybridization between them is possible, and may present a threat to the vulnerable Bale Mountains vervet. Unlike that species, the grivet is common and rated as least concern by the IUCN.

Toque macaque

The toque macaque is a reddish-brown-coloured Old World monkey endemic to Sri Lanka, where it is known as the rilewa or rilawa, .

Assam macaque

The Assam macaque or Assamese macaque is a macaque of the Old World monkey family native to South and Southeast Asia. Since 2008, the species has been listed as "near threatened" by the IUCN, as it is experiencing significant declines due to hunting, habitat degradation, and fragmentation.

Booted macaque

The booted macaque is a macaque of the Sulawesi Island, Indonesia. This Old World monkey is diurnal and spends most of the day in the trees. It is 50–59 cm long plus a tail of 35–40 cm.

Bonnet macaque

The bonnet macaque, also known as zati, is a species of macaque endemic to southern India. Its distribution is limited by the Indian Ocean on three sides and the Godavari and Tapti Rivers, along with its related competitor the rhesus macaque in the north. Land use changes in the last few decades have resulted in changes in its distribution boundaries with the rhesus macaque, raising concern for its status in the wild.

Formosan rock macaque

The Formosan rock macaque, Formosan rock monkey, or Taiwanese macaque, is a macaque endemic to the island of Taiwan, which has also been introduced to Japan. Besides humans, Formosan rock macaques are the only native primates living in Taiwan. The species was first described by Robert Swinhoe in 1862.

Stump-tailed macaque

The stump-tailed macaque, also called the bear macaque, is a species of macaque found in South Asia. In India, it is found in south of the Brahmaputra River, in the northeastern part of the country. Its range in India extends from Assam and Meghalaya to eastern Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura.

Pagai Island macaque

The Pagai Island macaque, also known as the Pagai macaque or Bokkoi, is an Old World monkey endemic to the Mentawai Islands off the west coast of Sumatra. It is listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List due to its ever-shrinking habitat. Macaca pagensis formerly included the overall darker Siberut macaque as a subspecies, but this arrangement is polyphyletic, leading to the two being classified as separate species. Both were formerly considered subspecies of the southern pig-tailed macaque.

Southern pig-tailed macaque Species of mammal

The southern pig-tailed macaque, also known as the Sundaland pig-tailed macaque and Sunda pig-tailed macaque, is a medium-sized macaque that lives in southern Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia. It is known locally as the beruk.

Northern pig-tailed macaque

The northern pig-tailed macaque is a species of macaque in the family Cercopithecidae. It is found in Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. Traditionally, M. leonina was considered a subspecies of the southern pig-tailed macaque, but is now classified as individual species.

Tonkean macaque

The Tonkean black macaque or Tonkean macaque is a species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae. It is endemic to central Sulawesi and the nearby Togian Islands in Indonesia. It is threatened by habitat loss. Widespread mining in central Sulawesi is believed to exacerbating the problems of habitat loss.

References

  1. ↑ Groves, C. P. (2005). Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M. (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 164. ISBN   0-801-88221-4. OCLC   62265494.
  2. 1 2 Yongcheng, L. & Richardson, M. (2008). "Macaca thibetana". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2008: e.T12562A3359510. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2008.RLTS.T12562A3359510.en .
  3. ↑ Kumar, R. S.; Mishra, C.; Sinha, A. (2005). "Discovery of the Tibetan macaque Macaca thibetana in Arunachal Pradesh, India" (PDF). Current Science. 88 (9): 1387–1388.
  4. ↑ Zhao, Qi-Kun (1994). "Seasonal changes in body weight of Macaca thibetana at Mt. Emei, China". American Journal of Primatology. 32 (3): 223–226. doi:10.1002/ajp.1350320309.
  5. ↑ Andrew T. Smith; Yan Xie; Robert S. Hoffmann; Darrin Lunde; John MacKinnon; Don E. Wilson; W. Chris Wozencraft (15 May 2010). A Guide to the Mammals of China. Princeton University Press. pp. 34–. ISBN   978-0-691-09984-2 . Retrieved 21 August 2012.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Tibetan macaque videos, photos and facts – Macaca thibetana Archived 2012-08-23 at the Wayback Machine . ARKive (2006-12-22). Retrieved on 2012-08-21.
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