Crab-eating Macaque

Description:

Crab-eating Macaques (Macaca fascicularis) - foraging and feeding on fruit - at Monkey Jungle, Miami, Florida. << Crab-eating macaques typically do not consume crabs; rather, they are opportunistic omnivores, eating a variety of animals, plants, and other materials. Although fruits and seeds make up 60 - 90% of the dietary intake, they also eat leaves, flowers, roots and bark. >>

Habitat:

The crab-eating macaque (Macaca fascicularis) is a cercopithecine primate native to Southeast Asia. It is also called the "long-tailed macaque", and is referred to as the "cynomolgus monkey" in laboratories. The scientific name of the crab-eating macaque is Macaca fascicularis. Macaca comes from the Portuguese word macaco, which was picked up from makaku, a Fiot (West African language) word (kaku means 'monkey' in Fiot). Fascicularis is Latin for 'a small band or stripe'. Sir Thomas Raffles, who gave the animal its scientific name in 1821, did not specify what he meant by the use of this word, although it is presumed it had something to do with his observation of the animal's colour. This animal has several common names. It is often referred to as the long-tailed macaque because its tail is usually about the same length as its body and because its long tail distinguishes it from most other macaques. The species is also commonly known as the crab-eating macaque because they are often seen foraging beaches for crabs. Another common name for M. fascicularis is the cynomolgus monkey, which literally means "dog-milker" monkey; this is the name most commonly used in laboratory settings. In Indonesia, M. fascicularis and other macaque species are known generically as kera, possibly because of the high-pitched alarm calls they give when in danger ("krra! krra!"). Macaca fascicularis is a very social animal that lives in groups of 5–60 or more animals. These are multiple-male groups, normally containing two to five males and two to three times as many females. The number of immature is usually comparable to the number of females. Group size often depends on the level of predation and availability of food. Groups are female-centred, as the females are philopatric (i.e. remain in one place across generations), while the males move in and out of these female-based groups. Males generally first emigrate from their natal group at the age of four to six years. They will remain in a group up to four or five years and thus will emigrate several times throughout their lives. These monkeys are highly despotic and have a strict dominance hierarchy. Adult males rank higher than females. Female ranks are more stable than males, as males are defeated from time to time and then lose rank. High-ranked males are generally the most successful at reproduction, and high-ranked females generally fare best at raising surviving offspring. The females are organized into matrilines, which are the female-based families consisting of the related females and their descendents. Matrilines are ranked, and some families have greater social power than others; this difference in rank is maintained over several generations. Matrilineal overthrows rarely occur, and when they do, they have severe consequences to the reproductive success of the defeated matriline in the following year. Crab-eating macaques typically do not consume crabs; rather, they are opportunistic omnivores, eating a variety of animals, plants, and other materials. Although fruits and seeds make up 60 - 90% of the dietary intake, they also eat leaves, flowers, roots and bark. They also prey on vertebrates (including bird chicks, nesting female birds, lizards, frogs and fish), invertebrates and bird eggs. Although the species is ecologically well-adapted in its native range and poses no particular threat to the overall populations of prey species, in areas where the crab-eating macaque is not native, it can pose a substantial threat to biodiversity. (credit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crab-eating...)