 | Lion-tailed Macaque
Macaca silenus  Fascinating Facts - They spend virtually all their time in the trees, but walk quadrupedally when necessary.
- This macaque, unlike its more adaptive cousins, is very shy and rarely interacts with others. They generally try to avoid humans altogether.
- These monkeys have 17 different vocalizations to communicate.
Physical Characteristics The lion-tailed macaque is one of the smallest of the 15 species of macaques, with males weighing approximately 11 to 22 pounds. and females, from 7 to 13 pounds. They’re known for their lion-like manes and tails. The face is black and bare of fur while a long gray ruff encircles the face except on the forehead where the fur is parted by outwardly directed crown hair. The muzzle is somewhat elongated and the low brow ridges continue over the nose in the males. The tail has a tuft at the end, hence the name.
Life span in the wild and in captivity is 20 years. Habitat/Diet Lion-tailed macaques are found in the dense, moist evergreen and tropical hill forests of the southwestern peninsular India and western Ghats mountains.
In the wild, they eat a diet of fruits, nuts, berries, young leaves, blossoms, sprouts, seeds, insects, flowers, caterpillars, invertebrates and cardamon pulp. At the Zoo, the group is fed a diet of bread, fruit, raw potatos, lettuce, peanuts and vitamin supplements. Social Behavior These monkeys form multi-male groups in which there is a strong dominance hierarchy in both males and females. Kinship plays an important role in dominance with higher ranking mothers transmitting higher rank to her offspring. The group size ranges from four to 34 – but is usually 10 to 20 in number, with three to four adult males. Their territory ranges over 250 to 1,250 acres.
Lion-tailed macaques have many vocal sounds including grunts, screams and yowls. The leading male occasionally utters a very loud call heard when setting the group into motion which promotes cohesion within the group. Much communication is done by facial expression including a protruding lip gesture that is particular to this and the pig-tailed macaque. This gesture, used as a friendly act of greeting, involves lifting the head and nose into the air, raising the eyebrows and retracting the scalp, and extending the lips forward over their entire width. The macaque then looks down at the other monkey. Status In The Wild Lion-tailed macaques are listed as endangered. This is the most serious endangered macaque and one of the most critically endangered mammals in the world. The reproduction rate is very low and they are unable to adapt to human encroachment. Reduction of habitat is due to clearing of forests for agriculture. The largest remaining population was approximately 300 individuals in 160 square kilometers. However, recent reports indicate an area occupied by the largest population has been incorporated into an ecosphere reserve. Other You can see the Zoo’s lion-tailed macaques in the Primate Discovery Center. |
