Monkey

For other uses, see Monkey (disambiguation).

Cynomolgus Monkey at Batu Caves, Malaysia

Monkeys, Mori Sosen (1749-1821)

A monkey is any member of two of the three groupings of simian primates. These two groupings are the New World and Old World monkeys of which together there are nearly 200 species. Because of their similarity to monkeys, apes such as chimpanzees and gibbons are sometimes incorrectly called monkeys. Also, a few monkey species have the word "ape" in their common name. Because they are not a single coherent group, monkeys do not have any important characteristics that they all share and are not shared with the remaining group of simians, the apes.

Monkeys range in size from the Pygmy Marmoset, at 10 cm (4 inch) long (plus tail) and 120 g (4 oz) in weight to the male Mandrill, almost 1 metre (3 ft) long and weighing 35 kg (75 lb). Some are arboreal (living in trees), some live on the savanna; diets differ among the various species but may contain any of the following: fruit, leaves, seeds, nuts, flowers, insects, spiders, eggs and small animals.

Some characteristics are shared among the groups; most New World monkeys have prehensile tails while Old World monkeys do not; some have trichromatic colour vision like that of humans, others are dichromats or monochromats. Although both the new and old world monkeys, like the apes, have forward facing eyes, the faces of Old World and New World monkeys look very different though again, each group shares some features such as the types of noses, cheeks and rumps. To understand the monkeys, therefore, it is necessary to study the characteristics of the different groups individually.

Monkeys in captivity

A macaque sits in a cage in a German laboratory. [1]

As pets

Generally, monkeys do not make good pets. While baby monkeys are usually as easy to keep clean as a human infant (by diapering), monkeys that have reached puberty usually remove their diapers and cannot be toilet trained. They require constant supervision and mental stimulation. Bored monkeys can become extremely destructive and may even go so far as to smear or throw their own feces. Most adolescent monkeys begin to unpredictably bite and pinch adults and children alike. Any surgical means to stem this behavior (such removing the teeth or fingertips of the monkey) is widely considered cruel.

While a majority of monkey owners find their monkeys too difficult to manage as pets and find other homes for them (such as zoos and monkey rescues), some people report having long and rewarding relationships with their pet monkeys.

It is usually difficult to find veterinarians who will treat pet monkeys. Even many exotic animal veterinarians are not familiar with them.

In most large metropolitan areas it is illegal to keep monkeys in the home; even in places where they are legal, a USDA government permit is usually required to own them legally in the United States. Their legal status as pets varies in other countries.

In laboratories

Macaques and African green monkeys are widely used in animal testing facilities because of their relative ease of handling and their psychological and physical similarity to humans. Unlike human primates, non-human primates are not regarded as persons in law, and their individual interests are therefore not protected. In the United States, 15,000 macaques are currently housed in laboratories, [2] and 10,000 monkeys were used in experiments in the European Union in 2004. Highly sociable animals, monkeys are caged separately in barren cages, with no perch, no bedding, and nothing to stimulate them. Their cages are arranged in double or triple tiers to save space, which means the monkeys in the lower tiers spend their lives in the dark.

Viktor Reinhardt, a former research veterinarian, wrote for the International Primate Protection League that: "[t]he conditions I witnessed were so depressing that most monkeys had developed stereotypic behaviors such as pacing, rocking, bouncing, somersaulting, swaying from side to side, biting parts of their own bodies, pulling their ears, tossing their heads back and forth, or smearing feces on the cage walls." [3] [4] (mpg)

Classification

The following lists shows where the various monkey families (bolded) fall in the Primate classification. Note that the smallest grouping that contains them all is the Simiiformes, the simians, which also contains the apes. Calling apes monkeys is incorrect. Calling either a simian is correct.

• ORDER PRIMATES
  • Suborder Strepsirrhini: non-tarsier prosimians
  • Suborder Haplorrhini: tarsiers, monkeys and apes
    • Infraorder Tarsiiformes
      • Family Tarsiidae: tarsiers
    • Infraorder Simiiformes: simians
      • Platyrrhini: New World monkeys
        • Family Cebidae: marmosets, tamarins, capuchins and squirrel monkeys
        • Family Aotidae: night monkeys, owl monkeys, douroucoulis
        • Family Pitheciidae: titis, sakis and uakaris
        • Family Atelidae: howler, spider and woolly monkeys
      • Catarrhini
        • Superfamily Cercopithecoidea
          • Family Cercopithecidae: Old World monkeys
        • Superfamily Hominoidea
          • Family Hylobatidae: gibbons ("lesser apes")
          • Family Hominidae: great apes and humans

Monkeys in pop culture

Monkeys are prevalent in numerous books, tv shows, and movies. The television series Monkey, the literary characters Monsieur Eek and Curious George are all examples.

However, pop culture often incorrectly labels apes, particularly chimpanzees, gibbons, and gorillas, as monkeys. Terry Pratchett makes use of this trait in his Discworld novels, in which the Librarian of the Unseen University is an orangutan who gets very violent if referred to as a monkey.

Zodiac

The Monkey is the ninth in the 12-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese zodiac related to the Chinese calendar.

See also

• Monkey Man of New Delhi - collective hysteria in New Delhi in 2001
• Monkichi - Sanrio character

References

• "The Impossible Housing and Handling Conditions of Monkeys in Research Laboratories", by Viktor Reinhardt, International Primate Protection League, August 2001
• Inside the monkey house at Covance, shot undercover by the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection