Monkeys
by Nicole Boorujy
Body Parts of a Monkey
Monkeys are known for their long tails, but there are a lot of cool things about their tails. Their tails can be 3 feet long. Some monkeys can even hang from their tails. When they walk their tails always hang down because they are so long.
Hands and Feet
Monkeys use their hands and feet to grip onto branches on a tree, they have small ridges on their hands and feet to help them grabbing onto branches. Their long limbs make running a lot easier for them. On some hands of the monkey they have opposable thumbs and their fingers are structured very much like humans.
Face of a Monkey
Monkeys have a lot of cool features on their faces, which make them really unique from other animal. Old world monkeys have 32 teeth and New world monkeys have 36, some monkeys even use hair to floss their teeth. Most old world monkeys have small curved nostrils, which are close together, while most New world monkeys have round nostrils set far apart on a flat nose. Male Proboscis monkeys have a long big nose, that females find very attractive.
Fur of a Monkey
Most monkeys are covered in fur and it helps them in many different ways. Emeror tamrin monkeys whiskers can be different, which helps them recognize each other from far away. When Silvered langurs are young their fur is bright orange and their fur attracts others to help with babysitting. No monkeys ever look alike with their different fur.
The Life Cycle of a Monkey
Monkeys give birth to one to three babies. When they are first born they stay with their mothers for food and safety. Baby monkeys cling to their mothers tummy and since they are mammals they drink milk. After a week or two the baby monkeys climb onto the back of their mother and she carries her baby around the forest. When they are older they will not need their mothers milk anymore. When they get strong baby monkeys play fight for fun. They make little noises to show that they are just playing.
Adult Monkeys
Just like humans, monkeys grow up too. As they get older they eat leaves, fruits, and nuts. They eventually leave their parents and move on. When monkeys are older they can still be small, the Pygmy Marmost monkey, which is the smallest monkey only weighs between 120 and 140 grams, but also they can be big like the Mandrill monkey weighing up to 77 pounds.
Old Monkeys
Eventually monkeys become older. Monkeys tend to live for about 20 years, but it all depends on the type of monkey. They range anywhere from 15-45 years or older, depending on the species. The oldest monkey that ever lived was a black female Spider monkey and she was believed to be at least 52 years old.
Monkeys V.S. Apes
Differences
Apes and monkeys are very different. Unlike monkeys apes do not have tails, while most monkeys do have tails. New world monkeys are found in Africa, Asia, and Central America, Old world monkeys are found in Africa and Asia, while Great apes are found in or near tropical rainforests in Africa. Monkeys live up to 30 years in age and apes live to 60 years of age. There are hundreds of known species of moneys and around 23 species between Lesser apes and Great apes. They are two very different animals.
Similarities
Monkeys and apes are also similar in a lot of ways. They both live in the Primate family and they are really smart. They eat fruits, leaves, and plant material, but also insects, eggs, and sometimes meat. They are omnivorous, meaning they eat plants and animals. They are able to live between 20 and 60 years of age. They both live in groups. They are in the Animalia kingdom and are mammals. They are also very similar animals.
Endangered Monkeys
Most monkeys are becoming endangered from animals and humans. People are killing monkeys because they are bothering, them eating their crops, and people are eating the meat of monkeys. People are taking down and destroying their habitat. Since their food is dying they will able to eat and they need food to live. They are being kept as exotic pets and humans are hunting them. They are not only being killed by humans, but also animals. Their enemies are crocodiles and lions.
Solution to becoming endangered
Since monkeys are becoming endangered humans are trying to help them. They take them to zoos so they can be safe from being hurt. Breeding programs help many species get their populations increased. Hopefully one day many of them can be released successfully back into the wild.
Monkey Talk
Since all monkeys can not not speak they do other things than talking to understand each other. Monkeys use hand movements and different sounds with their mouth. It is like talking except for monkeys. You can not understand them, but they understand each other. Their different hand movements and noises all mean different things. They learned to do this on their own.
Different Communications
All monkeys communicate differently than others. Capuchins growl and show their teeth when they are upset. Monkeys comb through each others fur to show that they like each other. Baby Vervet monkeys make whirring sounds when they are upset. Blue monkeys make different loud calls, that mean food or follow me. Monkeys have a lot of ways of communicating to each other.