Squirrel Monkey
Saimiri spp
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Squirrel monkeys have short, thick, soft, often brightly coloured fur. Commonly they have white patches around the eyes, ears, and throat, while the rest of their body is a mixture of orange and grey. They have large, close-set eyes and lack a prehensile tail. The best time to see these monkeys is early morning. They sometimes approach visitors out of curiosity and even throw small items onto onlookers. They generally form larger groups than other monkeys of the New World, which consist of 120 – 300 or more individuals in areas of unaltered Amazon rainforest. Their calls are diverse and are specific to alarm, courtship, dominance, and pain. Around 26 different calls have been recorded. Despite pressures from hunting and the pet trade, the majority of the species remain abundant. They are classed as one of the most abundant South American primates. On the other hand, one of the species (S. vanzolinii) occupies the smallest geographic range of any monkey in South America.
