Squirrel Monkey

If you ever visit the Central American rain forest, you will see these 1 foot tall squirrel monkeys and it will be difficult to miss out on these monkeys as they are common in this part of the world. These monkeys belong to the family of or genus of Saimiri and to the sub family of Samirinae. They are very shy, but you can still find them jumping from one tree to another. If you are interested in knowing more about these monkeys, then here is some information and facts about these primates which I am sure you will find interesting.

Important Information

Physical Features
These creatures usually have short black/gray/yellow/white colored short fur and the fur near their shoulder is colored olive while that on the back is yellowish orange. The mouths of these monkeys are black in color while the eyes and the throat are white and the upper part is hairier than the lower part of the body. These monkeys grow up to a length of 20 to 40 cm excluding the tail which is 30 to 41cm in length and they is bi-colored with a black colored tip. Unlike the other monkeys, they do not use their tails for climbing but for balancing themselves and for grabbing hold of other things or as a tool.

Habitat and Diet
These monkeys are commonly found in the rain forests of Central and South America; Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Paraguay, Venezuela, Guyana, Brazil Suriname and even certain parts of Southern Florida. They can adapt themselves in any rain forests. These monkeys are omnivorous and they usually feed on small insects, spiders, fruits and nuts and even small-sized birds and bird eggs. They sometimes even feed on mollusks or maybe vertebrates like the tree frogs, the sap of a tree, the flowers or the leaves of a plant and sometimes even the gum from the tree. They usually get most of their water from the food that they eat and from the puddles that are formed on the ground or from the holes in the trees.

Movement
They live around 30 meters off the ground and they move around quietly but they cry out loud when they are alarmed. Their short thighs help them to jump from one tree to another. These monkeys are very protective about their babies and the latter move around the first few months on their mother's back.

Adaptations
There are some special adaptations which you will find interesting; if they sense danger from humans (who kill them for food), then their fur undergoes a glandular secretion which gives off a smell that keeps the hunters away. This same secretion is also used by them to mark a territory.

If you are planning to keep one as a pet, then you should know more about them and do some research on them so that you can take good care of them. But they are wild animals and thus they are better off in the forests. These monkeys are also said to be the most intelligent among the different types of monkeys and they also have the largest brain to body mass ratio when compared to the other monkeys in the world.

Like some of the other wild animals, these monkeys too are slowly becoming a part of the endangered species due to various human activities such as hunting and deforestation. If we do not start taking action now, then probably like the dinosaurs, squirrel monkeys too will be an animal to be seen only in museums.