The macaques (pronounced /məˈkæk/) constitute a genus (Macaca, /məˈkækə/) of Old World monkeys of the subfamily Cercopithecinae.
Description
Aside from humans (genus Homo), the macaques are the most widespread primate genus, ranging from Japan to Afghanistan and, in the case of the Barbary Macaque, to North Africa. Twenty-two macaque species are currently recognised, and they include some of the monkeys best known to non-zoologists, such as the Rhesus Macaque, Macaca mulatta, and the Barbary Macaque, M. sylvanus, a colony of which lives on the Rock of Gibraltar. Although several species lack tails, and their common names therefore refer to them as apes, these are true monkeys, with no greater relationship to the true apes than any other Old World monkeys.
Several species of macaque are used extensively in animal testing.
Nearly all (73-100%) pet and captive macaques are carriers of the herpes B virus. This virus is harmless to macaques, but infections of humans, while rare, are potentially fatal, a risk that makes macaques unsuitable as pets. [2] A 2005 University of Toronto study showed that urban performing macaques also carried simian foamy virus, suggesting they could be involved in the species-to-species jump of similar retroviruses to humans.[3]
Macaques also have a very intricate social structure and hierarchy. If a macaque who is lower level in the social chain has eaten berries and there is none left for the higher level macaque, then the one higher in status can, within this social organization, remove the berries from the other monkey's mouth. [4]
Species
Genus Macaca
- M. sylvanus group
- Barbary Macaque, Macaca sylvanus
- M. nemestrina group
- Lion-tailed Macaque, Macaca silenus
- Southern Pig-tailed Macaque or Beruk, Macaca nemestrina
- Northern Pig-tailed Macaque, Macaca leonina
- Pagai Island Macaque, Macaca pagensis
- Siberut Macaque, Macaca siberu
- Moor Macaque, Macaca maura
- Booted Macaque, Macaca ochreata
- Tonkean Macaque, Macaca tonkeana
- Heck's Macaque, Macaca hecki
- Gorontalo Macaque, Macaca nigriscens
- Celebes Crested Macaque, Macaca nigra
- M. fascicularis group
- Crab-eating Macaque, Macaca fascicularis
- Stump-tailed Macaque, Macaca arctoides
- M. mulatta group
- Rhesus Macaque, Macaca mulatta
- Formosan Rock Macaque, Macaca cyclopis
- Japanese Macaque, Macaca fuscata
- M. sinica group
- Toque Macaque, Macaca sinica
- Bonnet Macaque, Macaca radiata
- Assam Macaque, Macaca assamensis
- Tibetan Macaque, Macaca thibetana
- Arunachal Macaque, Macaca munzala
Prehistoric (fossil) species:
- Macaca anderssoni Schlosser, 1924
- Macaca jiangchuanensis Pan et al.[verification needed], 1992
- Macaca libyca Stromer, 1920
- Macaca majori Schaub & Azzaroli in Comaschi Caria, 1969 (sometimes included in M. sylvanus)
References
- ^ Groves, C. (2005). Wilson, D. E., & Reeder, D. M. ed. Mammal Species of the World (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 161-165. ISBN 0-801-88221-4. http://www.bucknell.edu/msw3.
- ^ Ostrowski, Stephanie R.; et al.. "B-virus from Pet Macaque Monkeys: An Emerging Threat in the United States?". Emerging Infectious Diseases (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)) 4 (1). http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/eid/vol4no1/ostrowsk.htm. Retrieved January 2010.
- ^ University of Toronto - News@UofT - Performing monkeys in Asia carry viruses that could jump species to humans (Dec 8/05)
- ^ "The Life of Mammals" Hosted by David Attenborough, 2003 British Broadcasting Corporation. BBC Video
See also
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Macaca
Wikispecies has information related to: Macaque
Kingdom: Animalia · Phylum: Chordata · Class: Mammalia · Order: Primates · Suborder: Haplorrhini
Cercopithecini
Papionini
(Macaques)