Snub-nosed monkey
Encyclopedia
Snub-nosed monkeys are a group of Old World monkey
s and make up the entirety of the genus
Rhinopithecus. The genus occurs rarely and needs much more research. Some taxonomists group snub-nosed monkeys together with the Pygathrix genus.
Snub-nosed monkeys live in Asia
, with a range covering southern China
(especially Tibet
, Sichuan
, Yunnan
, and Guizhou
) as well as the northern parts of Vietnam
and Myanmar
.
These monkey
s get their name from the short stump of a nose on their round face, with nostrils arranged forward. They have relatively multicolored and long fur, particularly at the shoulders and backs. They grow to a length of 51 to 83 cm with a tail of 55 to 97 cm.
Snub-nosed monkeys inhabit mountain forests up to a height of 4000 m, in the winter moving into the deeply secluded regions. They spend the majority of their life in the trees. They live together in very large groups of up to 600 members, splitting up into smaller groups in times of food-scarcity, such as in the winter. Groups consist of many more males than females. They have territorial instincts, defending their territory mostly with shouts. They have a large vocal repertoire, calling sometimes solo while at other times together in choir-like fashion.
The diet of these animals consists mainly of tree needles, bamboo buds, fruits and leaves. A multi-chambered stomach helps them with digesting their food.
The impulse for mating starts with the female. She takes up eye contact with the male and runs away a short bit, then flashes her genitals. If the male shows interest (which does not always occur), he joins the female and they mate. The 200-day gestation period ends with a single birth in late spring or early summer. Young animals become fully mature in about 6 to 7 years. Zoologists know little about their lifespan.
Old World monkey
The Old World monkeys or Cercopithecidae are a group of primates, falling in the superfamily Cercopithecoidea in the clade Catarrhini. The Old World monkeys are native to Africa and Asia today, inhabiting a range of environments from tropical rain forest to savanna, shrubland and mountainous...
s and make up the entirety of the genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
Rhinopithecus. The genus occurs rarely and needs much more research. Some taxonomists group snub-nosed monkeys together with the Pygathrix genus.
Snub-nosed monkeys live in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
, with a range covering southern China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
(especially Tibet
Tibet Autonomous Region
The Tibet Autonomous Region , Tibet or Xizang for short, also called the Xizang Autonomous Region is a province-level autonomous region of the People's Republic of China , created in 1965....
, Sichuan
Sichuan
' , known formerly in the West by its postal map spellings of Szechwan or Szechuan is a province in Southwest China with its capital in Chengdu...
, Yunnan
Yunnan
Yunnan is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the far southwest of the country spanning approximately and with a population of 45.7 million . The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders Burma, Laos, and Vietnam.Yunnan is situated in a mountainous area, with...
, and Guizhou
Guizhou
' is a province of the People's Republic of China located in the southwestern part of the country. Its provincial capital city is Guiyang.- History :...
) as well as the northern parts of Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
and Myanmar
Myanmar
Burma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....
.
These monkey
Monkey
A monkey is a primate, either an Old World monkey or a New World monkey. There are about 260 known living species of monkey. Many are arboreal, although there are species that live primarily on the ground, such as baboons. Monkeys are generally considered to be intelligent. Unlike apes, monkeys...
s get their name from the short stump of a nose on their round face, with nostrils arranged forward. They have relatively multicolored and long fur, particularly at the shoulders and backs. They grow to a length of 51 to 83 cm with a tail of 55 to 97 cm.
Snub-nosed monkeys inhabit mountain forests up to a height of 4000 m, in the winter moving into the deeply secluded regions. They spend the majority of their life in the trees. They live together in very large groups of up to 600 members, splitting up into smaller groups in times of food-scarcity, such as in the winter. Groups consist of many more males than females. They have territorial instincts, defending their territory mostly with shouts. They have a large vocal repertoire, calling sometimes solo while at other times together in choir-like fashion.
The diet of these animals consists mainly of tree needles, bamboo buds, fruits and leaves. A multi-chambered stomach helps them with digesting their food.
The impulse for mating starts with the female. She takes up eye contact with the male and runs away a short bit, then flashes her genitals. If the male shows interest (which does not always occur), he joins the female and they mate. The 200-day gestation period ends with a single birth in late spring or early summer. Young animals become fully mature in about 6 to 7 years. Zoologists know little about their lifespan.
Species
- Genus Rhinopithecus
- Golden snub-nosed monkeyGolden Snub-nosed MonkeyThe golden snub-nosed monkey is an Old World monkey in the Colobinae subfamily. It is endemic to a small area in temperate, mountainous forests of central and Southwest China. The Chinese name is sichuan golden hair monkey . It is also widely referred to as the sichuan snub-nosed monkey...
, Rhinopithecus roxellana- Moupin golden snub-nosed monkey, Rhinopithecus roxellana roxellana
- Qinling golden snub-nosed monkey, Rhinopithecus roxellana qinlingensis
- Hubei golden snub-nosed monkey, Rhinopithecus roxellana hubeiensis
- Black snub-nosed monkeyBlack Snub-nosed MonkeyThe black snub-nosed monkey , also known as the Yunnan snub-nosed monkey, is an endangered species of primate in the Cercopithecidae family. It is endemic to China, where it is known to the locals as the Yunnan golden hair monkey and the black golden hair monkey...
, Rhinopithecus bieti - Gray snub-nosed monkeyGray Snub-nosed MonkeyThe gray snub-nosed monkey , also known as the Guizhou snub-nosed monkey, is a species of primate in the Cercopithecidae family. It is endemic to China, where it is known as the Guizhou golden hair monkey or gray golden hair monkey . It is threatened by habitat loss...
, Rhinopithecus brelichi - Tonkin snub-nosed monkey, Rhinopithecus avunculus
- Myanmar snub-nosed monkeyMyanmar snub-nosed monkeyThe Myanmar snub-nosed monkey or Burmese snub-nosed monkey is a highly threatened species of colobine monkey found in northern Burma . The species is known in local dialects as mey nwoah . Rain allegedly causes it to sneeze due to the short upturned nasal flesh around its nostrils...
, Rhinopithecus strykeri.
- Golden snub-nosed monkey