One of the 18 monkeys on WAnimals
Mammals · Primates · Atelidae
Common Woolly Monkey
Lagothrix lagothricha
It faces a very high risk of extinction in the wild in the near future. See full glossary
The common woolly monkey is one of the largest primates in the Amazon, with a dense, woolly coat and a powerful prehensile tail. It lives in groups that can exceed thirty animals and travels long distances through the canopy in search of ripe fruit. It is a seed disperser of the first order: it swallows fruit whole and deposits the seeds intact far from the parent tree. Its very slow reproduction and its size make it especially vulnerable to subsistence hunting, which has wiped it out locally across many areas.
Weight
5.5 kg – 10.8 kg
Size
40 cm – 60 cm
Lifespan
25 years
Diet
Herbivore
Feeds mainly on plants.
Activity
Diurnal
Active mainly during the day.
Social structure
Herd
Lives in large groups as a strategy against predators.
Sighting difficulty
Hard
Fun facts
- The tip of its prehensile tail has a bare, ridged patch, with dermal ridges like those of a fingerprint, that gives it grip: it works literally as a fifth hand.
- It is one of the greatest sowers of large trees in the Amazon; where hunting removes it, the composition of the forest changes within a few decades.
Life cycle & biology
- Skeleton type
- Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (mammal)
- Habitat & environment
- Canopy of lowland and foothill rainforest of the western Amazon
- Size at birth
- Born with its eyes open, clinging to its mother's fur from the first day
- Sexual maturity
- 7 years
- Gestation / incubation
- 7.3 months
- Litter / clutch size
- 1
Sources consulted: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagothrix_lagotricha
Where to find it
See its range on the interactive mapBest time: All year round in western Amazonia, by day; it moves unhurriedly and is found in trees laden with fruit.
Where to watch it
Parks and dive sites where this species has been documented.
Related species
Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with Common Woolly Monkey — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.
Black Spider Monkey
Ateles chamek
Peruvian Yellow-tailed Woolly Monkey
Lagothrix flavicauda
Least ConcernColombian Red Howler Monkey
Alouatta seniculus
VulnerableRed-faced Black Spider Monkey
Ateles paniscus
EndangeredCentral American Spider Monkey
Ateles geoffroyi
Mountain Tapir
Tapirus pinchaque
How to help
The common woolly monkey is classified as endangered. Organizations such as UICN, WWF y Wildlife Conservation Society work specifically on its conservation and that of its habitat; looking into their programs is a good starting point if you want to get involved.
It's documented in 9 real protected areas — part of why protecting these places matters for its conservation.
Keep exploring
Based on what we already know about common woolly monkey.
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