Hamlyn's monkey

Owl's Head guenon ( Cercopithecus hamlyni )

The Owls head or Hamlynmeerkatze ( Cercopithecus hamlyni ) is a primate of the genus of vervet monkeys ( Cercopithecus ) within the family Cercopithecidae ( Cercopithecidae ).

Features

It is covered with a dense gray-green coat, which serves as its camouflage in the woods; salient feature is a white vertical stripe nose. In combination with a horizontal stripe, the supraorbital gives a T-shaped striking face mark. The animals reach a body length of 50 to 65 centimeters and a weight of 4 to 10 kg, with males considerably larger than females.

Distribution and habitat

Owl's Head monkeys are located in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda. Its habitat is dense forests, mainly bamboo forests.

Way of life

These primates hold off on both on the ground and on the trees and are diurnal. They live in small groups, usually less than ten animals. The groups consist of one male, several females and their offspring. They are territorial and mark their relatively small territory with secretions from scent glands on the chest. With a range of sounds the animals communicate with each other.

The main food of the owls head monkeys are bamboo shoots, in addition they also eat fruit, leaves and buds of other plants.

After five to six months gestation, the female gives birth to usually a single young is born.

Threat

The habitat of these animals is relatively small and repeatedly threatened by armed conflict, in addition, they suffer from the destruction of their habitat. The IUCN lists the species as "endangered" ( vulnerable ).