Capuchin Monkey

Capuchin monkeys (of the genus Cebus) are also known as sapajou, a common Central and South American primate that is found in tropical forests from Nicaragua to Paraguay. Capuchins are considered among the most intelligent of the New World monkeys and are named for their "caps" of hair that resemble the cowls of Capuchin monks. These monkeys are stockily built and round-headed, with opposable thumbs and fully-haired prehensile tails. The body is 30–55 cm (12–22 in) long, having a tail of about a similar length. Colouration ranges from pale to dark black or brown, with white facial markings in a few of the four species.

Etymology

The term "capuchin" derives from the group of friars named the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin, which is an offshoot from the Franciscans, who wear brown robes with large hoods. When Portuguese explorers reached the Americas in the 15th century, they had found small monkeys whose coloring resembled these friars, especially when in their robes with hoods down and termed them capuchins. When the scientists defined a specimen (thought to be the golden-bellied Capuchin), they have noted that: "his muzzle of a tanned colour - with the lighter colour around his eyes, which melts into the white at the front, his cheeks, give him the involuntarily looks that reminds us of the appearance, which historically represents in our country as laziness, ignorance, and sensuality." The scientific name of the genus is given as Cebus, which comes from the Greek word kêbos, meaning a long-tailed monkey.

Physical Characteristics

Capuchins are brown, black, whitish, or buff, but their exact pattern and colour depend on the species involved. Usually, the capuchin monkeys are dark brown, having a cream or off-white colouring around their necks. They reach a length of 30 - 56 cm (12 - 22 in), with tails that are simply as long as the body. On average, they weigh ranging from 1.4 - 4 kg (3 - 9 pounds) and live nearly 25 years old in their natural habitats.

Description

Capuchins go about in the noisy troops consisting of many young and adults. They frequent the tops of the tall forest trees but roam throughout the complete vertical range of their habitat from forest floor to canopy. A home of troops range covers 50–100 hectares (124–247 acres), and individuals travel around 3 km (1.9 miles) per day within the range. These monkeys, being very active during the day, at times forage with squirrel monkeys, feeding on fruit, the other vegetable matter, and small animals. The capuchin diet is broad, encompassing around 95 plant species in a few areas, but palm fruits are preferred in specific by capuchins; stronger individuals even smash the nuts to get at the insides. Sometimes, capuchins will raid plantations and farms for corn, oranges, and other food.

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Capuchin monkeys apparently breed at any point in time in a year, although in Central America, births are more frequent during the dry seasons. Gestation takes up to six months, and births are generally single. Individual females give birth at intervals of either one to two years, and the young reach maturity in 3 - 4 years. In captivity, capuchin monkeys are trained easily and have been popularly associated with roving performers such as organ grinders.

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Classification

The species-level taxonomy of this particular genus remains highly controversial, and alternative treatments compared to the one listed here have been suggested.

In 2011, Jessica Lynch Alfaro et al. has proposed that the robust capuchins (formerly called the C. apella group) be placed in a separate Sapajus genus from the gracile capuchins (formerly called C. capucinus group), which retain the genus Cebus. The other primatologists, such as Paul Garber, have begun using this specific classification.

According to the genetic studies, which were led by Lynch Alfaro in 2011, the gracile and robust capuchins diverged nearly 6.2 million years ago. Lynch Alfaro also suspects that the divergence was triggered by the Amazon River creation, which separated the monkeys in the Amazon north of the Amazon River and then evolved into the gracile capuchins. Those in the Atlantic Forest south of the river have evolved into robust capuchins. Gracile capuchins hold longer limbs relative to the capuchin monkey size (body size) compared to the robust capuchins and contain rounder skulls, whereas robust capuchins hold jaws better adapted for the opening of hard nuts. Male capuchins have beards and robust ones have crests.

The classification can be given as:

• Genus Cebus

• Genus Sapajus

• Blond capuchin, Sapajus flavius

• Black-striped capuchin, Sapajus libidinosus

• Black capuchin, Sapajus nigritus

• Sapajus robustus, Crested capuchin or robust tufted capuchin

• Golden-bellied capuchin, Sapajus xanthosternos

The genus Cebus consists of either five or more species, based on the taxonomic criteria used, and they are often separated into two groups. The crested, or tufted, group usually includes the brown Capuchin (called C.apella), where the crown bears a dark cap of long erect hairs, which often form crests or tufts. The uncrested or the untufted group includes the more lightly built white-fronted (C. albifrons), white-throated (C. capucinus) and weeper (C. nigrivittatus) capuchins, where the crown bears a smooth, dark, and either less or more pointed cap. The name black-capped Capuchin has been applied to both the C. nigrivittatus and C. apella. The genus Cebus belongs to the Cebidae family.

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Behaviour

Like most of the New World monkeys, capuchins are arboreal and diurnal. They spend their entire day searching for food, with the exception of a midday nap. At night, they sleep in the trees and wedged between branches. Regarding their habitat, they are undemanding and can hence be found in several differing areas.

Diet

The capuchin monkey feeds on a vast range of food types and is more different compared to the other monkeys in the Cebidae family. They are omnivores and consume a wide range of plant parts such as flowers, leaves, and seeds, fruit, pith, woody tissue, bulb, sugarcane, and exudates and molluscs, arthropods, a variety of vertebrates, and even primates as well. Recent findings of the old stone tools in Capuchin habitats have also suggested that recently the Capuchins have switched from small nuts, such as cashews, to harder and larger nuts.

Capuchins have been noticed to also be specifically good at catching frogs. They are characterized as extreme and innovative foragers because of their ability to acquire sustenance from a wide collection of unlikely food that may assure them survival in habitats with extreme food limitations. Capuchins, which are living near water, will also eat shellfish and crabs by cracking their shells with stones.

Social and Cultural Structure

Often, capuchin monkeys live in large groups of 10 - 35 individuals within the forest, although they may easily adapt to the places colonized by humans. The Capuchins contain discreet hierarchies, which are distinguished by sex and age. Usually, a single male will dominate the group and hold primary rights to mate with the females of their group. However, the white-headed capuchin groups are led both by an alpha male and female. Every group will cover a large territory since the members must search for the best areas to feed. These primates are territorial animals, distinctly marking the central area of their territory with urine and defending it against the intruders, though outer areas may overlap.

The stabilization of group dynamics can be served via mutual grooming, and communication takes place between the monkeys via multiple calls. Their vocal communications have different meanings, such as creating warnings about a predator, contact with one another, and forming new groups. The Capuchins'Capuchins' social experience directly influences the development of attention in society. They create new social behaviours within the multiple groups, which signify various types of interactions. These include; displays against enemies, infant and sexual intimacy, tests of friendship. This also creates social rituals, which are designed to test the strength of social bonds and a reliance on social learning.

Habitat

Capuchins prefer environments, which give them access to shelter and easy food, such as mountain forests, low-lying forests, and rain forests. Particularly, they are abundant in Argentina, Costa Rica, Brazil, Honduras, Peru and Paraguay. At night, they use these areas for shelter and food access during the day. The canopy of trees allows for protection from threats, and the innate ability of Capuchin Monkeys to climb trees with ease allows them to escape and hide from the predators on the jungle floor. This environment is mutually beneficial for the Capuchins and for the ecosystem where they inhabit. This is due to the reason they spread their seed leftovers and faecal matter across the forest floor that helps new plants to grow, thus adding to the already abundant foliage, which shelters the Capuchin.

Life History

Ancestors of the Capuchin monkey, which is called Panamacebus Transitus, is a newly discovered species of the monkey that is found in Panama that seems to have lived 21 million years ago. It is the earliest known discovery of the monkeys to travel between North and South America, although it is still unknown how this species travelled from the continent. A researcher named Lynch Alfaro has stated that the gracile Capuchin Monkey genera arose around 6.2 million years ago, and the modern Capuchin culture emerged within the previous century. It is this early species, which set the stage for the Capuchin to thrive in the Central American forests nowadays.

The Capuchin monkey has been known to roam these forests for years and their population has boomed; the area where they inhabit allows for the Capuchin offspring to thrive. The reproduction of these specific monkeys does not differ much from its fellow primates. Capuchins are polygamous, and the females mate throughout the whole year but only go through a gestation period once every 2 years between the period December and April.

Females bear young ones every two years following a 160- to 180-day gestation. The young cling to their mother smothers chest until they are larger, and then they move to her back. Adult male Capuchin rarely takes part in caring for the young ones. Juveniles become fully mature within 4 years for the females and 8 years for males. In captivity, individuals have reached an age of 50 years, although the natural life expectancy is only 15 - 25 years. Capuchins live in groups of 6-40 members, having related females, their offspring, and many males.