Spider monkeys are a group of New World monkey species native to the forests of Central and South America, named for their long, slender limbs and long prehensile tail, which together give them a spider-like appearance as they move through the canopy. They are among the most agile of all primates, swinging arm over arm through the trees and using their strong tail as a fifth limb to grip branches while feeding or resting. Spider monkeys live in large, loosely organized social groups that split into smaller subgroups to forage, feeding mainly on ripe fruit supplemented by leaves and seeds. Several spider monkey species are heavily threatened by deforestation and hunting, and some are classified as endangered or critically endangered.
Facts
Classification
System (Realm) Relationship to People Living or ExtinctDerived from this species' own Conservation Status: this atlas's IUCN category list has no Extinct value, so a set conservation-status is itself evidence of living status (w-bfill-g5-0924 browse backfill). Scientific Name Conservation StatusAll seven Ateles species are threatened; the IUCN Red List lists one as vulnerable, five as endangered (the modal outcome recorded here), and one, the brown spider monkey, as critically endangered. Identification
Distinguishing AppearanceSpider monkeys have disproportionately long, spindly limbs and a highly prehensile tail with a hairless, fingerprint-like grooved tip that can reach nearly 90 centimeters long. 1 Connections
Child Taxon Of
In Biome
Source Spider Monkey (Wikipedia)
Open Questions
Source Spider Monkey (Wikipedia)
In the Other Atlases
- Also in Geography Atlas: Brazil, found in there.
- Also in Geography Atlas: Mexico, found in there.
- Also in Geography Atlas: South America, found in there.
Sources
1. Spider Monkey (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationSpider monkey, summary extract
Spider monkeys are New World monkeys belonging to the genus Ateles, part of the subfamily Atelinae, family Atelidae.
Spider monkey, Description section
Disproportionately long, spindly limbs inspired the spider monkey's common name. Their deftly prehensile tails, which may be up to 89 cm (35 in) long, have very flexible, hairless tips and skin grooves similar to fingerprints.
Spider monkey, Conservation status section
The IUCN Red List lists one species as vulnerable, five species as endangered and one species as critically endangered.
- In Biome: Tropical Rainforest, Wikipedia 'Spider monkey': found in tropical forests, live in the upper layers of the rainforest
View the Source 2. Spider monkey (Wikipedia)
- an important food source due to their large size, so are widely hunted by local human populations
- primarily eat fruits
- found in tropical forests of Central and South America
View the SourceCatalogue of Life
Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of LifeChild Taxon Of: AtelidaeView the Source Open Questions (1 open question)
How many spider monkeys exist in the wild?
All seven Ateles species are assessed as threatened, but published figures cover only individual species and local populations; no total wild population figure spanning the whole genus has been assembled.
What would resolve this Range-wide population surveys for each of the seven Ateles species, combined into a single genus total.
Primatology and conservation biologySpider Monkey (Wikipedia)
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