Owl Monkey

Owl monkeys
Lemurine Owl Monkey
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Primates Family: Atelidae Genus: Aotus
Species
Aotus azarae Aotus brumbacki Aotus hershkovitzi Aotus infulatus Aotus lemurinus Aotus miconax Aotus nancymaae Aotus nigriceps Aotus trivirgatus Aotus vociferans Ref: ITIS 572811 2002-07-26

The Owl monkeys, Night monkeys or Douroucoulis are the genus Aotus of New World monkeys (monotypic in subfamily Aotinae). They are widely distributed in the forests of Central and South America, from Panama south to Paraguay and northern Argentina. The genus name means "earless"; they have ears, of course, but the external ears are tiny and hard to see. They are also called "night monkeys" because they are active at night. The Owl monkeys are in fact the only truly nocturnal monkeys.

Currently ten species are recognised by most authorities. Until 1983, these were not differentiated. Some authors still believe that there are only two or three true species, the remaining types being subspecies of these. The most widely agreed distinction is between a grey-necked group, including Aotus lemurinus, A. brumbacki, A. trivirgatus and A. vociferans, and a red-necked group, including A. miconax, A. nigriceps, A. nancymai, A. infulatus and A. azarae; authors recognising only two species refer to these as A. trivirgatus and A. azarae respectively.

Owl monkeys make a notably wide variety of vocal sounds, 50-100 distinct calls having been identified. Unusually among the New World monkeys, they are monochromats, that is, they have no colour vision, presumably because it is of no advantage given their nocturnal habits.

All owl monkeys form pair bonds, and live in family groups of the mated pair with their immature offspring. Family groups defend territories by vocal calls and scent marking. Only one infant is born each year. The male is the primary caregiver, and the mother only carries the infant for the first week or so of its life.

Classification

• ORDER PRIMATES
  • Suborder Strepsirhini: non-tarsier prosimians
  • Suborder Haplorhini: tarsiers, monkeys and apes
    • Family Tarsiidae: tarsiers
    • Superfamily Platyrrhini
      • Family Cebidae:
      • Family Atelidae
        • Subfamily Aotinae
          • Southern Owl Monkey, Aotus azarae
          • Brumback's Owl Monkey, Aotus brumbacki
          • Hershkovitz's Owl Monkey, Aotus hershkovitzi
          • Kuhl's Owl Monkey, Aotus infulatus
          • Lemurine Owl Monkey, Aotus lemurinus
          • Andean Owl Monkey, Aotus miconax
          • Peruvian Red-necked Owl Monkey, Aotus nancymae
          • Black-headed Owl Monkey, Aotus nigriceps
          • Northern Owl Monkey, Aotus trivirgatus
          • Spix's Owl Monkey, Aotus vociferans
        • Subfamily Callicebinae
        • Subfamily Pitheciinae
        • Subfamily Alouattinae
        • Subfamily Atelinae
    • Superfamily Catarrhini
      • Family Cercopithecidae: Old World monkeys
      • Family Hylobatidae: gibbons
      • Family Hominidae: great apes and humans