Monkeys and apes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The main source used on this page is the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: iucnredlist.org.

 

 

In fact, we are so closely related to the chimpanzee and the bonobo that we should belong to the same genus. As humans were described scientifically before the chimpanzee and the bonobo, they ought to be renamed Homo troglodytes and Homo paniscus, respectively! A number of religious people might find that offensive, so the step has not (yet) been made.

All species of apes have been declining drastically in the last hundred years due to poaching, infectious diseases, and loss of habitat, caused by expanding human activities. Although conservation efforts have increased significantly in recent years, it is assumed that this decline will continue, due to the rapid growth of human populations, felling of forests, lack of law enforcement due to corruption, and political instability in some countries. Some animals are still caught for zoos, and many are shot for the commercial bushmeat trade in certain African countries.

 

 

Today, the total population is probably less than 400,000 individuals. Many populations are endangered due to habitat destruction and poaching for bushmeat.

 

 

 

 

 

All three species are seriously endangered due to habitat destruction and fragmentation, and illegal poaching for zoos. It has been estimated that the population of the Bornean orangutan in 1973 was about 300,000 individuals, and it is assumed that this number will decline to c. 50,000 by 2025. The Sumatran orangutan has an estimated population of fewer than 14,000, and it is predicted that this number will decline by 80% by 2060. The population of Tapanuli orangutan is fewer than 800, and this number is still decreasing.

In 1985, I visited the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre in Sabah, Borneo. This centre is home to a number of orphaned orangutans, which were confiscated from poachers, who shot their mothers to get hold of the young. This centre, where the young ones are trained to a life in the wild, is presented in depth on the page Travel episodes – Borneo 1985: Visiting orangutans.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This word was later used by American physician and missionary Thomas Staughton Savage (1804-1880) and naturalist Jeffries Wyman (1814-1874), when they described the gorilla in 1847, calling it Troglodytes gorilla. (Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gorilla)

Previously, gorillas were regarded as belonging to a single species, Gorilla gorilla, but they have since been divided into two species, the western gorilla (Gorilla gorilla), with two subspecies, the lowland gorilla (gorilla) and the Cross River gorilla (diehli), and the eastern gorilla (Gorilla beringei), likewise with two subspecies, the mountain gorilla (beringei) and Grauer’s gorilla (graueri).

The western gorilla is found in Cameroun, Central African Republic, Gabon, and the Republic of Congo, with tiny populations in eastern Nigeria and northern Angola. The population of subspecies gorilla is probably around 250,000 individuals, whereas subspecies diehli is seriously endangered, counting only about 300 individuals. The population reduction of this species, in its widest sense, is predicted to exceed 80% by 2070, due to illegal hunting, disease (Ebola virus), and habitat loss.

The eastern gorilla lives in montane forests of eastern Zaire, north-western Rwanda, and south-western Uganda. This region has been subject to war and civil war for many decades, during which gorillas also fell victim. Subspecies beringei, which counts only about 900 individuals, is the only great ape that has increased in number lately, whereas subspecies graueri has been severely affected by human activities, most notably poaching for commercial trade of bushmeat. This illegal hunting has been facilitated by a proliferation of firearms from the various wars of this region. Previously estimated to number around 17,000 individuals, recent surveys show that Grauer’s Gorilla numbers have dropped to only about 3,800 individuals.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the past, all grey langurs on the Indian Subcontinent were regarded as belonging to a single species, Semnopithecus entellus, which was divided into six subspecies. However, recent morphological studies, combined with DNA-analyses, have revealed that the grey langurs should be regarded as six full species: northern plains langur (S. entellus), terai langur (S. hector), Nepal langur (S. schistaceus), Kashmir langur (S. ajax), black-footed langur (S. hypoleucos), and tufted langur (S. priam).

Today, most authorities consider all langurs on the Indian Subcontinent as belonging to the genus Semnopithecus. Formerly, two species, the Nilgiri langur (S. johnii) of south-western India, and the purple-faced langur (S. vetulus) of Sri Lanka, were regarded as members of the otherwise Southeast Asian genus Trachypithecus.

 

Northern plains langur is quite common, living in a variety of habitats, including forests, scrubland, temple groves, gardens, and towns, up to an altitude of c. 1,700 m. It is locally threatened by habitat loss due to intensified agriculture and fires, and by hunting for food by newly settled people in Andhra Pradesh and Orissa.

Previously, western and southern populations of this species were regarded as a separate species, the southern plains langur (S. dussumieri), but recent genetic research has declared this name invalid.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The total number of terai langurs is probably only about 10,000 mature individuals, and the population is slowly declining, mainly due to habitat loss.

On an excursion with my Indian friend Ajai Saxena to the area around Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, we had company of a couple of terai langurs, which took their seat on the roof of our car. Presumably, many car drivers feed these monkeys, but as we oppose the habit of feeding wild animals, we didn’t give them anything, and shortly after they disappeared, jumping into the trees.

 

 

 

 

 

It mainly lives in lush monsoon forests, occasionally found in scrubland and agricultural areas. It is quite common, and the population is fairly stable. Threats include habitat loss through logging, fire, and human encroachment, and it is hunted in Tibet for usage in traditional medicine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some authorities believe that the black-footed langur is a natural hybrid between the northern plains langur and the Nilgiri langur (S. johnii, below), whereas others regard it as a subspecies of the former.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Subspecies priam occurs in several disjunct populations from the southern shores of the Krishna River, Andhra Pradesh, southwards to the city of Madurai, Tamil Nadu, whereas subspecies thersites is distributed in the dry zone of Sri Lanka, and in parts of the West Ghats in India. The affinity of some South Indian populations is not known, as they have been very poorly researched. The tufted langur lives in forests, temple groves, gardens, and cultivated areas, in India up to c. 1,200 m altitude, and in Sri Lanka up to c. 500 m.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Formerly, the Nilgiri langur was threatened by habitat loss due to mining, dams, and human settlement, and by hunting, but the latter has decreased in recent years due to better protection, and after the introduction of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act in 1972, the population has increased. Since the 1990s, it has been relatively stable, counting around 20,000 individuals.

Previously, this species was placed in the genus Trachypithecus, which is mainly found in Southeast Asia, but following genetic research it was transferred to Semnopithecus.

The specific name honours German missionary and naturalist Christoph Samuel John (1747-1813), who worked for the Danish-Halle Mission in the Danish settlement of Tranquebar, southern India, today known as Tarangambadi.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Subspecies nestor lives in a similar habitat, further north than vetulus, whereas philbricki is found in moister forests of the dry zone. Subspecies monticola is restricted to the montane forests of central Sri Lanka, at elevations between 1,000 and 2,200 m.

All four subspecies are endangered, as they are believed to have undergone a decline of more than 50% in the last 40 years due to habitat loss and hunting.

Like the Nilgiri langur, the purple-faced langur was formerly placed in the genus Trachypithecus, but has likewise been moved to Semnopithecus.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The generic name is derived from Ancient Greek trach (‘rough’), referring to the dense fur of some species in this genus, and pithekos (‘monkey’).

 

The total known range of this langur is less than 30,000 km², and much of it is not suitable habitat. The estimated population is less than 1,200 individuals in India and around 4,000 in Bhutan. It has declined by more than 30% in the last 30 years and is expected to decline further due to habitat loss. The population in India is highly fragmented, with the southern population completely separated from northern populations due to the effects of human activities.

The golden langur was described as late as 1956, but was known much earlier by naturalists, the earliest record being by R.B. Pemberton in a paper from 1838, Report on Bootan Indian Studies Past and Present. However, his work was lost and not rediscovered until the 1970s, and the golden langur was not mentioned again until 1907, when E.O. Shebbeare reported seeing a ’cream-coloured langur’ in the vicinity of Jamduar.

In 1919, a publication stated that a pale yellow-coloured langur was common in a district near Goalpara in Assam, and in 1947, C. G. Baron wrote: ”I saw some white monkeys (…) and, as far as I know, they are an undescribed species. Their entire body and tail are of the same colour – pale silver-golden, not unlike a blonde.”

A number of other sightings roused the interest of celebrated naturalist Edward Pritchard Gee (1904-1968), who observed and photographed three troops of golden langurs in 1953. He reported his results to the Zoological Survey of India, and in 1955 six specimens were collected. The species was described by Dr. H. Khajuria, who named it Presbystis gee, in honour of Mr. Gee. (Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gee%27s_golden_langur)

The population of golden langur in Manas National Park, Assam, is threatened by hybridization with a close relative, the capped langur (Trachypithecus pileatus). Formerly, these two species were separated by rivers, but a number of constructed bridges has now made it easy for them to cross these rivers.

 

 

 

 

 

Delacour’s langur, which is endemic to northern Vietnam, is popularly called white-shorts langur, alluding to its characteristic white rear body. It is critically endangered, primarily threatened by hunting for traditional medicine, and also by loss of habitat. As of 2010, less than 250 individuals were believed to remain in the wild.

This species was named in honour of French-American ornithologist Jean Théodore Delacour (1890-1985).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This species is endangered. The total number is unknown, but it is believed that c. 1,300 individuals live in the Son Tra area in Vietnam. The species is threatened by hunting for food and traditional medicine, and by habitat loss.

 

 

 

 

 

The generic name stems from the word makaku, plural of kaku, a West African Bantu name for a species of mangabey. In Portuguese, makaku became macaco, and in French macaque, the latter adopted by the British. In 1798, French taxonomist Bernard Germain de Lacépède (1756-1825) applied this word of African origin, in the form Macaca, to an almost exclusively Asian group of monkeys, presumably because he was familiar with the Barbary macaque (Macaca sylvanus) – the only species of the group outside Asia, living in north-western Africa and on the Rock of Gibraltar, southern Spain. (Source: itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/003458.html)

 

The long-tailed macaque lives in a wide range of habitats, including mangrove, forests, agricultural areas near forest, and temple groves. In the Philippines, it is found at elevations up to 1,800 m, in Indonesia up to 1,000 m, and in Thailand up to 700 m, whereas in Cambodia and Vietnam it generally occurs below 300 m. In the Philippines, some populations are threatened by hunting.

It is rather puzzling, why Sir Thomas Raffles (1781-1826), Lieutenant-Governor of British Java 1811-1815, and Governor-General of Bencoolen (on Sumatra) 1817-1822, applied the specific name fascicularis (‘with a small band or stripe’) to this species, as it does not have any stripes.

The following pictures are all from the so-called ‘Monkey Forest’ in Ubud, Bali, Indonesia, a forested area around the Hindu temple Wenara Wana, which is home to several troops of these monkeys.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Vishnu and other Hindu deities are presented in depth on the page Religion: Hinduism.

 

 

 

 

 

The rhesus monkey has become well-known through its usage in medical research, which detected the rhesus factor, an inherited antigen in the blood of humans. Its fur is mainly brown, with an orange tinge on the hind parts, and the tail is rather short, 20-30 cm. This monkey lives in very diverse habitats, from semi-desert via various forest types to temple groves and cities, from the lowland up to c. 2,500 m altitude.

Following a strong decline due to felling of forest, combined with export of many animals for medical research, the rhesus monkey is now expanding in India, with an estimated population of 500,000 individuals, or more. This expansion is mainly due to the fact that it has adapted to a life in cities.

The size of a territory of a typical troop of rhesus monkeys has been measured at up to 16 km² in montane forest, and 1-3 km² in other types of forest, whereas in Kolkata, a troop of 62 individuals was studied, thriving successfully in an area of less than 4 hectares, in the centre of this metropolis.

In some areas, especially in Laos and Vietnam, the species is hunted for food, and habitat destruction has also affected populations locally in Southeast Asia.

Due to the great deeds, performed by the monkey army in the great Hindu epic Ramayana (see caption Hanuman, the monkey god, at the bottom of this page), monkeys are regarded as sacred animals among Hindus, and troops of monkeys often live around temples, where part of their diet consists of rice, sweets, or other edibles, brought as offerings by devout Hindus.

One such temple is the great Buddhist stupa Swayambhunath in Kathmandu, Nepal – a Buddhist stupa, which also contains Hindu shrines. Several troops of rhesus monkeys live in the forest around this stupa.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This species is very common, locally abundant, living in all forest types, scrubland, plantations, agricultural lands, and urban areas. It is usually found below 2,000 m altitude, occasionally up to 2,600 m. As it often feeds in agricultural areas, conflicts with humans is an increasing problem. It is locally hunted, and many are caught for research, as well as for street performing (see caption Monkeys and culture, further down on this page).

Whereas the temple monkeys in northern India are mainly rhesus monkeys, this role is taken over by bonnet macaques in southern Indian temples. As food is always plentiful, the monkeys don’t have to move much around, and they often become obese.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In its widest sense, this species lives in a variety of forest types, from sea level up to about 2,100 m. The distribution areas of all three subspecies are very fragmented, and opisthomelas is restricted to an area of less than 500 km², with only a fifth of this area actually occupied by the animals. The chief threat to this species is habitat loss due to establishment of plantations and agricultural lands. Many are shot, as they are doing considerable damage to crops.

The toque macaque is still widely distributed, but the population may have declined by more than 50% since 1975.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The lion-tailed macaque is endemic to rainforests of the West Ghats, south-western India, in the states of Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu. Although it is distributed in a huge area, the factual area of occupancy is small, as its habitat has been severely fragmented due to establishment of agricultural areas and plantations of tea, coffee, cardamom, and eucalyptus.

The total population of this animal is estimated at less than 4,000 individuals, made up of 47 isolated sub-populations. In one location, the Kodagu District, Karnataka, the species is highly threatened by hunting for food. In later years, the population seems to have become stabilized due to better protection measures.

The pictures below are all from the Puthutottam Forest, Tamil Nadu, where a troop of lion-tailed macaques have become accustomed to people, as they are often being fed by tourists.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Recently, the Moroccan population was estimated at 6,000 to 10,000 individuals, whereas in 1975 it was about 17,000. In Algeria, around 1980, the population was estimated at 5,500, but the present number is unknown. The total population may have declined by more than 50% since 1980, and the decline is expected to continue. All areas occupied by the Barbary macaque are under growing pressure from human activities.

There is also a small population of about 300 animals on the Rock of Gibraltar, southern Spain, which may, at least in part, be a remnant of the former European population. Historical sources, however, mention repeated release of African animals on the rock.

In his work from about 1610, Historia de la Muy Noble y Más Leal Ciudad de Gibraltar (’History of the Very Noble and Most Loyal City of Gibraltar’), Alonso Hernández del Portillo writes, “But now let us speak of other and living producers, which in spite of the asperity of the rock still maintain themselves in the mountain; there are monkeys, who may be called the true owners, with possession from time immemorial, always tenacious of the dominion, living for the most part on the eastern side in high and inaccessible chasms.” (Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbary_macaques_in_Gibraltar)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pig-tailed macaques are named for their short tail, which is often curved, resembling the curl on a pig’s tail.

The southern pig-tailed macaque, also known as Sunda pig-tailed macaque, is common in some places, but generally its numbers have decreased significantly due to habitat loss through logging and establishment of agricultural areas and oil palm plantations. It is frequently shot as a crop pest.

 

 

 

 

 

The Taiwan macaque occurs from sea level up to an elevation of about 3,600 m, but is most common between 1,000 and 1,500 m. There are no major threats to the species.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Guinea baboon (P. papio) is found in a rather small area, from southern Mauritania southwards to Guinea.

The hamadryas baboon (P. hamadryas) lives around the African Horn, in Ethiopia, and in south-western Arabia.

The olive baboon (below) is widespread.

The yellow baboon (below) lives in eastern and southern Africa.

The Kinda baboon (P. kindae) occurs in south-western Tanzania, southern Zaire, western Zambia, and northern Angola.

The chacma baboon (below) is found in southern Africa.

 

The olive baboon is also called Anubis baboon, alluding to the Egyptian god of embalming, who had the head of a jackal. Baboons have dog-like muzzles.

This species is very adaptable and is able to survive in secondary forest and cultivated areas. Despite being considered a pest, which is trapped, shot, and poisoned in places, it is still locally common.

In a 200-km wide region in central Kenya, the olive baboon hybridizes with the yellow baboon, often making it difficult to allocate animals to one or the other species.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The yellow baboon is found from south-eastern Ethiopia and Somalia southwards to northern Mozambique, and thence across Malawi and Zambia to southern Zaire and northern Angola. Where possible, it prefers to live in Brachystegia woodland (miombo), but is also found in scrubland, savanna, and mangrove, and it is also able to survive in secondary forest and cultivated areas. There are no major threats to the species, although in some places it has been displaced by agriculture. Many are also trapped to be exported for medical research.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It is still widespread, but was much affected by droughts, which ravaged Ethiopia in the 1980s. From an estimated population of maybe 800,000 individuals, a present guesstimate says c. 200,000. Its habitat is being eroded as a result of agricultural expansion, as an increasing number of people are moving into the central highlands. In some areas, the grazing pressure is high, forcing the geladas to move to less productive grass slopes.

The generic name is from the Greek thero (‘beastly’) and pithekos (‘monkey’), alluding to the rather grotesque appearance of the male of this species. In Greek mythology, Thero was a fierce Naiad, nurse of the infant Ares, who later became god of courage and war, but also of civil order.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These monkeys are widespread in sub-Saharan Africa, comprising 5 species in the genus Colobus, called black-and-white colobus, 10 species in the genus Piliocolobus, called red colobus, and one species in the genus Procolobus, the olive colobus (P. verus). Most species are restricted to forests, but may occasionally stray into scrubland and plantations.

 

In parts of its range, this species is threatened by habitat loss due to lumbering, establishment of plantations, and conversion to agricultural land. Hunting is rampant in some areas of the western part of its range.

In 1988, during a stay in Arusha National Park, northern Tanzania, my companion Thomas Bregnballe and I were camping on a beautiful spot at the foot of Mount Meru, beneath a couple of huge trees, entwined by strangler figs. On our first night here, we were a little alarmed by an unbelievably powerful noise, coming from these trees, sounding like a mixture of some gigantic croaking frog, and a car engine that won’t start. As it turned out, the source of this sound was a troop of Kilimanjaro black-and-white colobus, subspecies caudatus, which used these trees as night roost.

 

 

 

 

 

The total population is estimated at less than 2,000 individuals, and it is still decreasing due to habitat destruction, caused by timber felling, charcoal production, clearance for cultivation, and fires. Conservationists are working with the local government to devise an effective strategy to protect this species and its habitat.

It was named after physician, naturalist, and British Governor General of Zanzibar, Sir John Kirk (1832-1922), who was the first to raise awareness about this species. He was also the leading figure in ending the slave trade in Zanzibar, with the aid of his political assistant, Ali bin Saleh bin Nasser Al-Shaibani.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These monkeys are widely distributed, from Angola and Zaire eastwards to the Indian Ocean and Zanzibar Island, and from Ethiopia southwards to eastern South Africa, from sea level up to 3,800 m. To some degree, they are threatened by deforestation and habitat fragmentation, and in places by hunting for food and traditional medicine.

 

 

 

 

 

Unlike the guenons, green monkeys spend much time on the ground in the daytime, sleeping in trees at night. They are also dependent on daily access to water.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This species is widespread across the Sahel zone of sub-Saharan Africa, from southern Mauritania, Gambia, and Senegal, eastwards to western Ethiopia and northern Zaire, Uganda, and Kenya, with isolated populations elsewhere in Kenya, in northern Tanzania, and on the Air and Ennedi Massifs in the Sahara. It lives in savannas and dry woodland, being commonest in woodland with scattered acacias. In some areas, it is threatened by habitat loss due to increasing desertification, and occasionally it is hunted for food or shot as a crop pest.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All species of spider monkeys are threatened due to habitat destruction and hunting for food, and two species, the black-headed (A. fusciceps) and the brown (A. hybridus), are critically endangered.

The generic name is derived from Ancient Greek ateleia (‘incomplete’ or ‘imperfect’), alluding to the reduced or non-existent thumbs of these monkeys.

 

Spider monkeys of the Yucatan Peninsula and northern Guatemala are variously treated as belonging to subspecies vellerosus or yucatanensis, the latter now discarded by a number of authorities, whereas animals from northern Costa Rica, known as the red spider monkey, belong to subspecies ornatus. This subspecies is illustrated at the top of this page.

The specific name was given in honour of French naturalist Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire (1772-1844).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Howler monkeys are famous for their loud call, which can be heard almost 5 km away. They have an enlarged hyoid bone, which enables them to produce this incredibly loud noise. The main function of the howling is probably to guard the territory of the troop.

The generic name is a corruption of arawata, the Carib name of the Venezuelan red howler monkey (A. seniculus).

 

The specific name is derived from the Latin pallium, a large cloak, worn by Greek philosophers. In this case, it refers to the tuft of long hairs on the sides of this animal.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The generic name is derived from Ancient Greek kebos, the term for a kind of long-tailed monkey.

The word capuchin derives from a group of Franciscan friars, named the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin, which arose in 1520, when Italian friar Matteo da Bascio claimed that God had informed him that the manner of life led by his contemporary friars was not the one, which St. Francis of Assisi had dictated. The friars of this order wear brown robes with pointed hoods, called capuche. When the conquistadors reached Central America late in the 15th Century, they noticed some small monkeys, whose colouring resembled these friars, so they named them capuchins. (Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capuchin_monkey)

 

In the West, it is one of the best known of all monkeys, as it was often the faithful companion of the organ grinder, who would walk from town to town, playing his organ, while his monkey would perform a dance.

Until recently, this animal was considered conspecific with the Columbian white-headed capuchin (C. capucinus), which is found in coastal areas from eastern Panama southwards to Ecuador.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A collection of pictures, depicting marvellous Jain temples, are found on the page Religion: Jainism.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One day, Sita was abducted by Ravana, a ten-headed and twenty-armed demon king from Sri Lanka. Hanuman, leader of the monkey army, was a supporter of Rama, and he volunteered to go to Sri Lanka to negotiate Sita’s release.

It is told that during his stay in Sri Lanka, Hanuman stole mango fruits. For this sin, Ravana ordered him to be burned. Ravana’s soldiers tied a rag, soaked in oil, to his tail and set fire to it. During his attempt to extinguish the fire, Hanuman’s face and hands were blackened by the fire. The episode was noticed by the god of fire, Agni, who protected Hanuman from the heat, while the flaming tail, in retaliation, set many houses on fire. An enormous leap brought Hanuman back to India.

During the final battle, Rama managed to kill the evil demon king, and Sita was released. When the 14 years of exile had passed, Rama went home and assumed his throne.

As a reward for his services, Hanuman was raised to become a deity. He inspires strength in people, making him popular among men, whereas women generally regard him with mistrust, because he is unmarried. Due to the great deeds, performed by the monkey army in the Ramayana, monkeys are considered sacred among Hindus, and troops of rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta), bonnet macaques (Macaca radiata), or grey langurs (Semnopithecus) often live around temples, where part of their diet consists of rice, sweets, or other edibles, brought as offerings by devout Hindus.

The legend informs us that Hanuman is a langur, which has black face and hands, and thus not a macaque, which is uniformly brown. Nevertheless, macaques are sacred animals on par with langurs.

The pictures below show various aspects of monkeys, referring to the Ramayana.