1.
Geoffroy's spider monkey
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There are at least five subspecies. Some primatologists classify the black-headed spider monkey, found in Panama, Colombia and it is one of the largest New World monkeys, often weighing as much as 9 kg. Its arms are longer than its legs, and its prehensile tail can support the entire weight of the monkey and is used as an extra limb. Its hands have only a thumb, but long, strong. These adaptations allow the monkey to move by swinging by its arms beneath the tree branches, Geoffroys spider monkey lives in fission–fusion societies that contain between 20 and 42 members. Its diet consists primarily of fruit and it requires large tracts of forest to survive. As a result of loss, hunting and capture for the pet trade. Geoffroys spider monkey belongs to the New World monkey family Atelidae and it is a member of the subfamily Atelinae, which includes the spider monkeys, woolly monkeys and muriquis, and of the genus Ateles, which contains all the spider monkeys. The genus name Ateles means imperfect, a reference to the vestigial thumb, the species name geoffroyi is in honor of French naturalist Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire. Agreement over the number of spider species is not universal. Kellogg and Goldman based their classification on fur color, and Groves based his on fur color, kellogg and Goldman differentiated Geoffroys spider monkey from other species by its dark black head, hands and wrists. Recent studies use mitochondrial DNA to help differentiate species, older studies by Porter, et al. indicate the howler monkeys are believed to have branched off from the other Atelides over 10 million years ago. The black-headed spider monkey, Ateles fusciceps, is considered by such as Groves. Other authorities, including Froelich, Collins and Dubach and Nieves, under this treatment, the two subspecies of the black-headed spider monkey represent additional subspecies of Geoffroys spider monkey, A. g. fusciceps and A. g. rufiventris. Observations by local people indicate the southernmost subspecies, the spider monkey, A. g. grisescens. In western Colombia and northeast Panama, it is replaced by the spider monkey, A. fusciceps. Geoffroys spider monkey lives in various types of forest, including rains, semideciduous, higher densities of Geoffroys spider monkeys are generally found in areas containing evergreen forest. Geoffroys spider monkey is one of the largest New World monkeys and its length measures between 30 and 63 cm and it weighs between 6 and 9 kg
2.
Central America
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Central America is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. Central America is bordered by Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the east, Central America consists of seven countries, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama. The combined population of Central America is between 41,739,000 and 42,688,190, Central America is a part of the Mesoamerican biodiversity hotspot, which extends from northern Guatemala through to central Panama. Due to the presence of several active faults and the Central America Volcanic Arc. Volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur frequently, these disasters have resulted in the loss of many lives. In the Pre-Columbian era, Central America was inhabited by the peoples of Mesoamerica to the north and west. Soon after Christopher Columbuss voyages to the Americas, the Spanish began to colonize the Americas, the seven states finally became independent autonomous states, beginning with Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica, and Guatemala, followed by El Salvador, then Panama, and finally Belize. Middle America is usually thought to comprise Mexico to the north of the 7 states of Central America as well as Colombia, usually the whole of the Caribbean to the north-east and sometimes the Guyanas are also included. According to one source, the term Central America was used as a synonym for Middle America as recently as 1962, in Brazil, Central America comprises all countries between Mexico and Colombia, including those in the Caribbean. Mexico, in whole or in part, is included by British people. For the people living in the 5 countries formerly part of the Federal Republic of Central America there is a distinction between the Spanish language terms América Central and Centroamérica, in the Pre-Columbian era, the northern areas of Central America were inhabited by the indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica. Most notable among these were the Mayans, who had built numerous cities throughout the region, and the Aztecs, following Christopher Columbuss voyages to the Americas, the Spanish sent many expeditions to the region, and they began their conquest of Maya territory in 1523. Soon after the conquest of the Aztec Empire, Spanish conquistador Pedro de Alvarado commenced the conquest of northern Central America for the Spanish Empire. Beginning with his arrival in Soconusco in 1523, Alvarados forces systematically conquered and subjugated most of the major Maya kingdoms, including the Kiche, Tzutujil, Pipil, and the Kaqchikel. By 1528, the conquest of Guatemala was nearly complete, with only the Petén Basin remaining outside the Spanish sphere of influence, the last independent Maya kingdoms – the Kowoj and the Itza people – were finally defeated in 1697, as part of the Spanish conquest of Petén. In 1538, Spain established the Real Audiencia of Panama, which had jurisdiction over all land from the Strait of Magellan to the Gulf of Fonseca. This entity was dissolved in 1543, and most of the territory within Central America then fell under the jurisdiction of the Audiencia Real de Guatemala. This area included the current territories of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Mexican state of Chiapas, the president of the Audiencia, which had its seat in Antigua Guatemala, was the governor of the entire area
3.
Monkey
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Monkeys are haplorhine primates, a group generally possessing tails and consisting of about 260 known living species. There are two lineages of monkeys, New World Monkeys and catarrhines. Apes emerged within the catarrhines with the Old World monkeys as a sister group, however, traditionally apes are not considered monkeys, rendering this grouping paraphyletic. The equivalent monophyletic clade are the simians, many monkey species are tree-dwelling, although there are species that live primarily on the ground, such as baboons. Most species are active during the day. Monkeys are generally considered to be intelligent, particularly Old World monkeys, lemurs, lorises, and galagos are not monkeys, instead they are strepsirrhine primates. Like monkeys, tarsiers are haplorhine primates, however, they are not monkeys. There are two types of monkey, New World monkeys from South and Central America and Old World monkeys from Africa. Hominoid apes, which all lack tails, are also catarrhines but are not considered monkeys, Simians and tarsiers emerged within haplorrhines some 60 million years ago. New World monkeys and catarrhine monkeys emerged within the simians some 35 millions years ago, Old World monkeys and Hominoidea emerged within the catarrhine monkeys some 25 millions years ago. Extinct basal simians such as Aegyptopithecus or Parapithecus are also considered monkeys by primatologists, according to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the word monkey may originate in a German version of the Reynard the Fox fable, published circa 1580. In this version of the fable, a character named Moneke is the son of Martin the Ape, colloquially, the terms monkey and ape are widely used interchangeably. Also, a few species have the word ape in their common name. Monkeys thus constituted a grade on the path to humans and were distinguished from apes, scientific classifications are now more often based on monophyletic groups, that is groups consisting of all the descendants of a common ancestor. The New World monkeys and the Old World monkeys are each monophyletic groups, thus the term monkey no longer refers to a recognized scientific taxon. The smallest accepted taxon which contains all the monkeys is the infraorder Simiiformes, however this also contains the hominoids, so that monkeys are, in terms of currently recognized taxa, non-hominoid simians. Colloquially and pop-culturally, the term is ambiguous and sometimes monkey includes non-human hominoids, in addition, frequent arguments are made for a monophyletic usage of the word monkey from the perspective that usage should reflect cladistics. A group of monkeys may be referred to as a tribe or a troop
4.
Mantled howler
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The mantled howler, or golden-mantled howling monkey, is a species of howler monkey, a type of New World monkey, from Central and South America. It is one of the species most often seen and heard in the wild in Central America. It takes its name from the long guard hairs on its sides. The mantled howler is one of the largest Central American monkeys and it is the only Central American monkey that eats large quantities of leaves, it has several adaptations to this folivorous diet. Since leaves are difficult to digest and provide less energy than most foods, the male mantled howler has an enlarged hyoid bone, a hollow bone near the vocal cords, which amplifies the calls made by the male, and is the reason for the name howler. Howling allows the monkeys to locate each other without expending energy on moving or risking physical confrontation, the mantled howler lives in groups that can have over 40 members, although groups are usually smaller. Most mantled howlers of both sexes are evicted from the group they were born in upon reaching maturity, resulting in most adult group members being unrelated. The most dominant male, the male, gets preference for food and resting places. The mantled howler is important to the rainforest ecology as a seed disperser, although it is affected by deforestation, it is able to adapt better than other species, due to its ability to feed on abundant leaves and its ability to live in a limited amount of space. The mantled howler belongs to the New World monkey family Atelidae and it is a member of the subfamily Alouattinae and genus Alouatta, the subfamily and genus containing all the howler monkeys. The species name is A. palliata, a pallium was a cloak or mantle worn by ancient Greeks and this refers to the long guard hairs, known as a mantle, on its sides. Two additional subspecies of the mantled howler are sometimes recognised, but these are generally recognised as subspecies of the Coiba Island howler. However, mitochondrial DNA testing of their status has been inconclusive, Azuero howler, Alouatta palliata trabeata, in Panama, Alouatta palliata coibensis, the mantled howlers appearance is similar to other howler monkeys of the genus Alouatta except for coloration. The mantled howler is primarily black except for a fringe of yellow or golden brown hairs on the flanks of the body earning the common name mantled howler monkey. When the males reach maturity, the scrotum turns white, females are between 481 and 632 mm in body length, excluding tail, and males are between 508 and 675 mm. The prehensile tail is between 545 and 655 mm long, adult females generally weigh between 3.1 and 7.6 kg, while males typically weigh between 4.5 and 9.8 kg. Average body weights can vary significantly between monkey populations in different locations, the brain of an adult mantled howler is about 55.1 g, which is smaller than that of several smaller monkey species, such as the white-headed capuchin. The mantled howler shares several adaptations with other species of monkey that allow it to pursue a folivorous diet, that is
5.
Black-headed spider monkey
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The black-headed spider monkey is a species of spider monkey, a type of New World monkey, from Central and South America. It is found in Colombia, Nicaragua and Panama, the two subspecies are, Ateles fusciceps fusciceps - northwestern Ecuador. Ateles fusciceps rufiventris - southwest Colombia to eastern Panama, a. f. fusciceps lives in tropical and subtropical humid forests between 100 and 1,700 metres above sea level. It lives in population densities of 1.2 monkeys per square kilometer, a. f. rufiventris lives in dry forests, humid forests and cloud forests, and can live up to 2,000 to 2,500 metres above sea level. A. f. fusciceps has a black or brown body, a. f. rufiventris is entirely black with some white on its chin. The black-headed spider monkey is one of the larger New World monkeys, the head and body length, excluding tail, typically ranges between 39.3 and 53.8 cm. The prehensile tail is between 71.0 and 85.5 cm, on average, males weigh 8.89 kilograms and females weigh 8.8 kilograms. The black-headed spider monkey is arboreal and diurnal and it moves by climbing and brachiation. When mating, females may consort with a male for up to three days, or else mate with several males, mating occurs with the male and female face to face, and can last for five to 10 minutes. The gestation period is between 226 and 232 days, the infant rides on its mothers back for 16 weeks, and is weaned at 20 months. Females attain sexual maturity at 51 months, males at 56 months, females give birth every three years. Captive black-headed spider monkeys have been known to more than 24 years
6.
Taxonomy (biology)
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Taxonomy is the science of defining groups of biological organisms on the basis of shared characteristics and giving names to those groups. The exact definition of taxonomy varies from source to source, but the core of the remains, the conception, naming. There is some disagreement as to whether biological nomenclature is considered a part of taxonomy, the broadest meaning of taxonomy is used here. The word taxonomy was introduced in 1813 by Candolle, in his Théorie élémentaire de la botanique, the term alpha taxonomy is primarily used today to refer to the discipline of finding, describing, and naming taxa, particularly species. In earlier literature, the term had a different meaning, referring to morphological taxonomy, ideals can, it may be said, never be completely realized. They have, however, a value of acting as permanent stimulants. Some of us please ourselves by thinking we are now groping in a beta taxonomy, turrill thus explicitly excludes from alpha taxonomy various areas of study that he includes within taxonomy as a whole, such as ecology, physiology, genetics, and cytology. He further excludes phylogenetic reconstruction from alpha taxonomy, thus, Ernst Mayr in 1968 defined beta taxonomy as the classification of ranks higher than species. This activity is what the term denotes, it is also referred to as beta taxonomy. How species should be defined in a group of organisms gives rise to practical and theoretical problems that are referred to as the species problem. The scientific work of deciding how to define species has been called microtaxonomy, by extension, macrotaxonomy is the study of groups at higher taxonomic ranks, from subgenus and above only, than species. While some descriptions of taxonomic history attempt to date taxonomy to ancient civilizations, earlier works were primarily descriptive, and focused on plants that were useful in agriculture or medicine. There are a number of stages in scientific thinking. Early taxonomy was based on criteria, the so-called artificial systems. Later came systems based on a complete consideration of the characteristics of taxa, referred to as natural systems, such as those of de Jussieu, de Candolle and Bentham. The publication of Charles Darwins Origin of Species led to new ways of thinking about classification based on evolutionary relationships and this was the concept of phyletic systems, from 1883 onwards. This approach was typified by those of Eichler and Engler, the advent of molecular genetics and statistical methodology allowed the creation of the modern era of phylogenetic systems based on cladistics, rather than morphology alone. Taxonomy has been called the worlds oldest profession, and naming and classifying our surroundings has likely been taking place as long as mankind has been able to communicate
7.
New World monkey
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New World monkeys are the five families of primates that are found in Central and South America and portions of Mexico, Callitrichidae, Cebidae, Aotidae, Pitheciidae, and Atelidae. The five families are ranked together as the Platyrrhini parvorder and the Ceboidea superfamily, platyrhini means flat-nosed, and their noses are flatter than those of other simians, with sideways-facing nostrils. Monkeys in the family Atelidae, such as the monkey, are the only primates to have prehensile tails. New World monkeys closest relatives are the simians, the Catarrhini. New World monkeys descend from African simians that colonized South America, New World monkeys differ slightly from Old World monkeys in several aspects. The most prominent phenotypic distinction is the nose, which is the feature used most commonly to distinguish between the two groups, the clade for the New World monkeys, Platyrrhini, means flat nosed. The noses of New World monkeys are flatter than the narrow noses of the Old World monkeys, New World monkeys are the only monkeys with prehensile tails—in comparison with the shorter, non-grasping tails of the anthropoids of the Old World. New World monkeys also typically lack the trichromatic vision of Old World monkeys, colour vision in New World primates relies on a single gene on the X-chromosome to produce pigments that absorb medium and long wavelength light, which contrasts with short wavelength light. As a result, males rely on a single medium/long pigment gene and are dichromatic, heterozygous females may possess two alleles with different sensitivities within this range, and so can display trichromatic vision. Platyrrhines also differ from Old World monkeys in that they have twelve premolars instead of eight, having a dental formula of 2.1.3.32.1.3.3 or 2.1.3.22.1.3.2. This is in contrast with Old World Anthropoids, including gorillas, chimps, bonobos, siamangs, gibbons, orangutans, and most humans, which share a dental formula of 2.1.2.32.1.2.3. Many New World monkeys are small and almost all are arboreal, unlike most Old World monkeys, many New World monkeys form monogamous pair bonds, and show substantial paternal care of young. They eat fruits, nuts, insects, flowers, bird eggs, spiders, unlike humans and most Old World monkeys, their thumbs are not opposable. About 40 million years ago, the Simiiformes infraorder split into the parvorders Platyrrhini and Catarrhini, the individuals whose descendents would become Platyrrhini are currently conjectured to have migrated to South America either on a raft of vegetation or via a land bridge. There are two possible rafting routes, either across the Atlantic Ocean from Africa or across the Caribbean from North America, however, there is no fossil record to support the hypothesis of a migration from North America. The land bridge hypothesis relies on the existence of Atlantic Ocean ridges and this would have either produced a single land bridge or a series of mid-Atlantic islands to act as stepping stones for the migration. The latter is now the favorite choice, the chromosomal content of the ancestor species appears to have been 2n =54. In extant species, the 2n value varies from 16 in the monkey to 62 in the woolly monkey
8.
Atelidae
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The Atelidae are one of the five families of New World monkeys now recognised. It was formerly included in the family Cebidae, atelids are generally larger monkeys, the family includes the howler, spider, woolly, and woolly spider monkeys. They are found throughout the regions of Central and South America. Atelid monkeys are small to moderate in size, ranging from 34 to 72 cm in length, with the howler monkeys being the largest members of the group. They have long tails with a sensitive, almost hairless. The tail is used as fifth limb while moving through the trees where they make their homes. They also have nails on their fingers and toes, enabling them to climb, most species have predominantly dark brown, grey, or black fur, often with paler markings. These are arboreal and diurnal animals, with most species restricted to dense rain forest, although some howler monkey species are found in drier forests and they mainly eat fruit and leaves, although the smaller species, in particular, may also eat some small insects. They have the formula,2.1.3.32.1.3.3 Females give birth to a single infant after a gestation period of 180 to 225 days. In most species, individuals give birth every one to three years, and there is little, if any, seasonal peak in the number of births, atelid monkeys are typically polygamous, and live in social groups with anything up to twenty five adults, depending on species. Currently,29 species of monkey are recognized, grouped into five genera
9.
Howler monkey
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Howler monkeys are among the largest of the New World monkeys and one of only a few nest-building monkeys. Previously classified in the family Cebidae, they are now placed in the family Atelidae and these monkeys are native to South and Central American forests. Threats to howler monkeys include human predation, habitat destruction and being captured for pets or zoo animals and these monkeys are famous for their loud howls, which can travel three miles through dense rainforest. A. caraya group Black howler, Alouatta caraya Howler monkeys have short snouts and wide-set and their noses are very keen, and they can smell out food up to 2 km away. Their noses are usually roundish snout-type, and the nostrils have many sensory hairs growing from the interior. They range in size from 56 to 92 cm, excluding their tails, like many New World monkeys, they have prehensile tails, which they use for picking fruit and nuts from trees. Unlike other New World monkeys, both male and female howler monkeys have trichromatic color vision and this has evolved independently from other New World monkeys due to gene duplication. They have lifespans of 15 to 20 years, Howler species are dimorphic and can also be dichromatic. Males are, on average,1.5 to 2.0 kg heavier than females, the hyoid of Alouatta is pneumatized, one of the few cases of postcranial pneumaticity outside the Saurischia. The volume of the hyoid of male howler monkeys is negatively correlated with the dimensions of their testes, Howler monkeys generally move quadrupedally on the tops of branches, usually grasping a branch with at least two hands or one hand and the tail at all times. Their strong prehensile tails are able to support their body weight. Fully grown adult howler monkeys do not often rely on their tails for full body support, most howler species live in groups of six to 15 animals, with one to three adult males and multiple females. Mantled howler monkeys are an exception, commonly living in groups of 15 to 20 individuals with more than three adult males, the number of males in a given group is inversely correlated with the size of their hyoid, and is positively correlated with testes size. This results in two groups, wherein one male with a larger hyoid and smaller testes copulates exclusively with a group of females. The other group has more males, which have smaller hyoids, and larger testes, the larger the number of males, the smaller the hyoid, and the larger the testes. Physical fighting among group members is infrequent and generally of short duration, both males and females rarely fight with each other, but physical aggression is even more rare between sexes. Group size varies by species and by location, with a ratio of one male to four females. As their name suggests, vocal communication forms an important part of their social behavior and they each have an enlarged basihyal or hyoid bone, which helps them make their loud vocalizations
10.
Spider monkey
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Spider monkeys of the genus Ateles are New World monkeys in the subfamily Atelinae, family Atelidae. Like other atelines, they are found in forests of Central and South America. The genus contains seven species, all of which are under threat, the spider monkey. Disproportionately long limbs and long tails make them one of the largest New World monkeys. Spider monkeys live in the layers of the rainforest, and forage in the high canopy. They primarily eat fruits, but will occasionally consume leaves, flowers. Due to their size, spider monkeys require large tracts of moist evergreen forests. They are social animals and live in bands of up to 35 individuals, recent meta-analyses on primate cognition studies indicated spider monkeys are the most intelligent New World monkeys. They can produce a range of sounds and will bark when threatened, other vocalisations include a whinny similar to a horse. They are an important food source due to their size, so are widely hunted by local human populations, they are also threatened by habitat destruction due to logging. Spider monkeys are susceptible to malaria and are used in studies of the disease. The population trend for spider monkeys is decreasing, the IUCN Red List lists one species as vulnerable, four species as endangered and this theory is not supported by fossil evidence. Other theories include Brachyteles, Lagothrix and Ateles in an unresolved trichotomy, more recent molecular evidence suggests the Atelinae split in the middle to late Miocene, separating spider monkeys from the woolly spider monkeys and the woolly monkeys. The genus contains seven species, and seven subspecies.66 kg for females, disproportionately long, spindly limbs inspired the spider monkeys common name. Their deftly prehensile tails, which may be up to 89 cm long, have flexible, hairless tips. This adaptation to their arboreal lifestyle serves as a fifth hand. When the monkey walks, its arms practically drag on the ground, unlike many monkeys, they do not use their arms for balance when walking, instead relying on their tails. The hands are long, narrow and hook-like, and have reduced thumbs, the fingers are elongated and recurved
11.
Woolly monkey
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The woolly monkeys are the genus Lagothrix of New World monkeys, usually placed in the family Atelidae. The four species of woolly monkeys all originate from the rainforests of South America and they have prehensile tails and live in relatively large social groups. One species of monkey, the yellow-tailed woolly monkey, has recently been placed in the genus Oreonax. Woolly monkeys have coat colour variations including dark brown, red-brown, gray and their back sides are usually lighter in color than their underbelly sides. They have black faces, and the palms of their hands are a pink color. Their tails are long and thick and are strong enough to support the full body weight. The species prehensile tail grips on tight to branches, acting as a fifth limb, woolly monkeys weigh an average of 17 lb, though males are substantially larger than females. Woolly monkeys are found throughout the countries of South America. The species lives in groups ranging from 10 to 45 individuals. Foraging groups, however, tend to consist of two to six individuals which branch out from the group, which is probably intended to reduce food competition between individuals. Woolly monkey diets consist of fruit with an addition of leaves, seeds, flowers, each group is governed and led by an alpha male, and the social organization within a larger group is organized by age, sex, and the reproductive status of females. Reproduction in these groups is characterized by promiscuity, one male mates with more than one female, shortly after the females reach maturity, they leave their natal groups to avoid any occurrence of inbreeding, while males tend to remain in their natal groups. Woolly monkeys have a system of vocalization and olfactory, visual. These can be used to group activities, indicate aggression, affection, and marking. Woolly monkeys are hunted by a variety of species of eagles and cats and their main predators, however, are humans, who hunt the species both for food and for the illegal pet trade. Habitat encroachment is also threatening the survival of the species, all factors are believed to be the cause of the species recent decline. Woolly monkeys are now considered endangered, and captive individuals are bred to ensure the survival of the species as part of the International Breeding Program for Endangered Species. ISBN 978-1-4939-0696-3, ISBN 978-1-4939-0697-0 Primate Info Net Lagothrix Factsheets
12.
Muriqui
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The muriquis, also known as woolly spider monkeys, are the monkeys of the genus Brachyteles. They are closely related to both the spider monkeys and the woolly monkeys, the two species are the southern and northern muriquis. They are the two largest species of New World monkeys, and the species is one of the most endangered of all the worlds monkeys. They are found only in the Atlantic coast forests of southeastern Brazil at altitudes ranging from sea level to 1500 m. The adult muriqui is 15-23 inches long without its tail and weighs from 10-20 pounds It ranges in coloration from brown to black and the underside of their prehensile tails has no fur at the end. Muriquis are folivores, but will also eat significant amounts of fruit and flowers in the season, as well as bark, bamboo, ferns, nectar, pollen. On average, males reach maturity in half this time, many groups are disappearing because the females leave to seek new males, but due to the small population the females are unsuccessful. This creates serious problems as groups of muriquis have no females to mate with. Observed group sizes range from four to 43, and can contain plentiful numbers of males and females. Muriquis are polygamous, and unlike other primates, males spend large periods of time together without significant aggressive encounters. As such, they are not territorial. The name muriqui comes from a native Tupi word meaning approximately largest monkey, B. arachnoides is also known as mono carvoeiro, which translates to charcoal monkey. Conservation of the Muriqui from Brazil Southern muriqui media at ARKive Northern muriqui media at ARKive Primate Info Net Brachyteles Factsheet Southern Muriqui Home Page - Pró- Muriqui Association
13.
Cebidae
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The Cebidae are one of the five families of New World monkeys now recognised. It includes the capuchin monkeys and squirrel monkeys and these species are found throughout tropical and subtropical South and Central America. Cebid monkeys are arboreal animals that only travel on the ground. They are generally small monkeys, ranging in size up to that of the capuchin, with a body length of 33 to 56 cm. They are somewhat variable in form and coloration, but all have the wide, flat and they are different from marmosets as they have additional molar tooth and a prehensile tail. They are omnivorous, mostly eating fruit and insects, although the proportions of these vary greatly between species. They have the formula,2.1.3. 2-32.1.3. 2-3 Females give birth to one or two young after a gestation period of between 130 and 170 days, depending on species. They are social animals, living in groups of five and forty individuals, with the smaller species typically forming larger groups. They are generally diurnal in habit, previously, New World monkeys were divided between Callitrichidae and this family. For a few recent years, marmosets, tamarins, and lion tamarins were placed as a subfamily in Cebidae, the most recent classification of New World monkeys again splits the callitrichids off, leaving only the capuchins and squirrel monkeys in this family
14.
Capuchin monkey
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The capuchin monkeys are New World monkeys of the subfamily Cebinae. They are readily identified as the monkey, and have been used in several movies. The range of capuchin monkeys includes Central America and South America as far south as northern Argentina, in Central America, they usually occupy the wet lowland forests on Caribbean coast of Costa Rica and Panama and deciduous dry forest on the Pacific coast. The word capuchin derives from a group of friars named the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin, an offshoot from the Franciscans, who wear brown robes with large hoods. When explorers reached the Americas in the 15th century, they found small monkeys whose coloring resembled these friars, especially when in their robes with hoods down, when the scientists described a specimen they noted that, his muzzle of a tanned color. With the lighter color around his eyes that melts into the white at the front, give him the looks that involuntarily reminds us of the appearance that historically in our country represents ignorance, laziness, and sensuality. The scientific name of the genus, Cebus comes from the Greek word kêbos, the species-level taxonomy of this genus remains highly controversial, and alternative treatments than the one listed below have been suggested. In 2011, Jessica Lynch Alfaro et al proposed that the robust capuchins be placed in a genus, Sapajus. Other primatologists, such as Paul Garber, have begun using this classification, according to genetic studies led by Lynch Alfaro in 2011, the gracile and robust capuchins diverged approximately 6.2 million years ago. Gracile capuchins have longer limbs relative to their size than robust capuchins. Gracile capuchins have rounder skulls, whereas robust capuchins have jaws better adapted for opening hard nuts, robust capuchins have crests and the males have beards. Capuchins are black, brown, buff or whitish, but their exact color and they reach a length of 30 to 56 cm, with tails that are just as long as the body. Like most New World monkeys, capuchins are diurnal and arboreal, with the exception of a midday nap, they spend their entire day searching for food. At night, they sleep in the trees, wedged between branches and they are undemanding regarding their habitat and can thus be found in many differing areas. The capuchin monkey feeds on a vast range of food types, capuchins have been observed to also be particularly good at catching frogs. Capuchins living near water will also eat crabs and shellfish by cracking their shells with stones, Capuchin monkeys inhabit a large range of Brazil and other parts of Latin and Central America. Capuchin monkeys often live in groups of 10 to 35 individuals within the forest. Usually, a male will dominate the group, and they have primary rights to mate with the females of their group
15.
Squirrel monkey
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Squirrel monkeys are New World monkeys of the genus Saimiri. They are the genus in the subfamily Saimirinae. The name of the genus is of Tupi origin, and was used as an English name by early researchers. Squirrel monkeys live in the forests of Central and South America in the canopy layer. Most species have parapatric or allopatric ranges in the Amazon, while S. oerstedii is found disjunctly in Costa Rica, the common squirrel monkey is captured for the pet trade and for medical research but it is not threatened. Two squirrel monkey species are threatened, the Central American squirrel monkey, genus Saimiri S.5 million years ago. S. boliviensis appears to be the first diverging species in the group, S. oerstedii and S. s. sciureus, are sister species. S. s. macrodon is the species to the S. oerstedii / S. s. sciureus clade. Squirrel monkey fur is short and close, coloured black at the shoulders and yellowish orange on its back and their throats and ears are white, and their mouths are black. The upper parts of their heads are hairy and this black-and-white face gives them the name deaths head monkey in several Germanic languages and Slovenian. Squirrel monkeys grow from 25 to 35 cm long, plus a 35 to 42 cm tail, male squirrel monkeys weigh 750 to 1100 g. Females weigh 500 to 750 g, both males and females are equipped with long and hairy tails, flat nails, and pointed claws. Female squirrel monkeys have pseudo-penises, which use to display dominance over smaller monkeys. Like most of their New World monkey relatives, squirrel monkeys are diurnal and arboreal, unlike other New World monkeys, their tail is not used for climbing but as a kind of balancing pole and also as a tool. Their movements in the branches can be very rapid, squirrel monkeys live together in multi-male/multi-female groups with up to 500 members. These large groups, however, can break into smaller troops. The groups have a number of calls, including warning sounds to protect the group from large falcons. Their small body size makes them susceptible to predators such as snakes
16.
Night monkey
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The night monkeys, also known as the owl monkeys or douroucoulis, are the members of the genus Aotus of New World monkeys. The only nocturnal monkeys, they are native to Panama and much of tropical South America, until 1983, all night monkeys were placed into only one or two species. He split Aotus into two groups, a northern, gray-necked group and a southern, red-necked group, a new species from the gray-necked group was recently described as A. jorgehernandezi. As is the case with some other splits in this genus, chromosome evidence has also been used as an argument for merging species, as was the case for considering infulatus a subspecies of A. azarae rather than a separate species. Fossil species have been assigned to genus, but only extant species are listed below. They are sometimes said to lack a tapetum lucidum, the layer behind the retina posessed by many nocturnal animals. Other sources say they have a tapetum lucidum composed of collagen fibrils and their ears are rather difficult to see, this is why their genus name, Aotus was chosen. There is little data on the weights of wild night monkeys, the male is slightly taller than the female, measuring 346 and 341 millimetres, respectively. Night monkeys can be found in Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, Bolivia, the species that live at higher elevations tend to have thicker fur than the monkeys at sea level. The night monkey can live in forests undisturbed by humans as well as forests that are recovering from human logging efforts, the name night monkey comes from the fact that all species are active at night and are, in fact, the only truly nocturnal monkeys. Night monkeys make a wide variety of vocal sounds, with up to eight categories of distinct calls. Unusual among the New World monkeys, they are monochromats, that is, they have no colour vision and they have a better spatial resolution at low light levels than other primates, which contributes to their ability to capture insects and move at night. Night monkeys live in groups consisting of a mated pair and their immature offspring. Family groups defend territories by vocal calls and scent marking, the night monkey is socially monogamous, and all night monkeys form pair bonds. 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. This is believed to have developed because it increases the survival of the infant, adults will occasionally be evicted from the group by same-sex individuals, either kin or outsiders. Most night monkey species are threatened by varying levels of habitat throughout their range, caused by agricultural expansion, cattle ranching, logging, armed conflict. They are also removed from wild for national and international trade and this trade is primarily for biomedical research and while much of it is legal, it is also continuing illegally from at least part of their range
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Tamarin
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The tamarins are squirrel-sized New World monkeys from the family Callitrichidae in the genus Saguinus. They are closely related to the tamarins in the genus Leontopithecus. Different tamarin species vary considerably in appearance, ranging from nearly all black through mixtures of black, brown, mustache-like facial hairs are typical for many species. Their body size ranges from 13 to 30 cm and they weigh from 220 to 900 grams, tamarins differ from marmosets primarily in having lower canine teeth that are clearly longer than the incisors. In captivity, tamarins can live for up to 18 years, tamarins range from southern Central America through central South America, where they are found in northwestern Colombia, the Amazon basin, and the Guianas. Tamarins are inhabitants of tropical rainforests and open forest areas and they are diurnal and arboreal, and run and jump quickly through the trees. Tamarins live together in groups of up to 40 members consisting of one or more families, more frequently, though, groups are composed of just three to nine members. Tamarins are omnivores, eating fruits and other plant parts as well as spiders, insects, small vertebrates, gestation is typically 140 days, and births are normally twins. The adult males, subadults, and juveniles in the group assist with caring for the young, bringing them to their mother to nurse, after approximately one month the young begin to eat solid food, although they arent fully weaned for another two to three months. They reach full maturity in their second year, while tamarins spend much of their day foraging, they must be on high alert for aerial and terrestrial predators. Due to their size compared to other primates, they are an easy target for predatory birds, snakes. The first classification of Saguinus tamarins contained ten different species, further divided into 33 morphotypes based on facial pelage, a later classification into two clades was based on variations in dental measurements. The latest classification postulates fifteen species with no subspecies
18.
Marmoset
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The marmosets are 22 New World monkey species of the genera Callithrix, Cebuella, Callibella, and Mico. All four genera are part of the biological family Callitrichidae, the term marmoset is also used in reference to the Goeldis marmoset, Callimico goeldii, which is closely related. Most marmosets are about 20 centimetres long, relative to other monkeys, they show some apparently primitive features, they have claws rather than nails, and tactile hairs on their wrists. They lack wisdom teeth, and their brain layout seems to be relatively primitive and their body temperature is unusually variable, changing by up to 4 °C in a day. Marmosets are native to South America and have found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay. They have also spotted in Central America and Mexico. They are also raised in captivity as pets, according to recent research, marmosets exhibit germline chimerism, which is not known to occur in nature in any primates other than callitrichids. Ninety-five percent of marmoset fraternal twins trade blood through chorionic fusions and they have long lower incisors, which allow them to chew holes in tree trunks and branches to harvest the gum inside, some species are specialised feeders on gum. Marmosets live in groups of three to 15, consisting of one to two breeding females, an unrelated male, their offspring and occasionally extended family members and unrelated individuals. Their mating systems are variable and can include monogamy, polygyny. In most species, fraternal twins are born, but triplets are not unknown. Like other callitrichines, marmosets are characterized by a degree of cooperative care of the young and some food sharing. Adult males, females other than the mother, and older offspring, most groups scent mark and defend the edges of their ranges, but it is unclear if they are truly territorial, as group home ranges greatly overlap. The favorite food of marmosets is carbohydrate-rich tree sap, which they reach by gnawing holes in trunks and their territories are centered on the trees that they regularly exploit in this way. The smaller marmosets venture into the top of forest canopies to hunt insects that are abundant there. Callithrix comes from Ancient Greek and means beautiful fur, Marmoset, from the French marmouset, is of uncertain etymology, although these monkeys are currently called ouistiti in French. The monkey is mentioned in Shakespeares Tempest, when Caliban says he will instruct his new master Stephano how to snare the nimble marmoset, the notoriously mistranslated phrasebook English As She Is Spoke contains the nonsensical proverb to craunch the marmoset. The American leftist poet Genevieve Taggard compared a humans back and forth pacing to a marmoset in her poem Interior, sax Rohmers fictional Dr. Fu Manchu has a pet marmoset, often perched on his shoulder
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Callitrichidae
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The Callitrichidae are a family of New World monkeys, including marmosets and tamarins. At times, this group of animals has been regarded as a subfamily, called Callitrichinae and this taxon was traditionally thought to be a primitive lineage, from which all the larger-bodied platyrrhines evolved. However, some argue that callitrichids are actually a dwarfed lineage. Ancestral stem-callitrichids likely were normal-sized ceboids that were dwarfed through evolutionary time and they are the smallest of the simian primates. They eat insects, fruit, and the sap or gum from trees, the marmosets rely quite heavily on tree exudates, with some species considered obligate exudativores. Callitrichids typically live in small, territorial groups of five or six animals. Their social organization is unique among primates and is called a cooperative polyandrous group and this communal breeding system involves groups of multiple males and females, but only one female is reproductively active. Females mate with more than one male and each shares the responsibility of carrying the offspring and they are the only primate group that regularly produces twins, which constitute over 80% of births in species that have been studied. Unlike other male primates, male callitrichids generally provide as much care as females. Parental duties may include carrying, protecting, feeding, comforting, in some cases, such as in the cotton-top tamarin, males, particularly those that are paternal, will even show a greater involvement in caregiving than females. The typical social structure seems to constitute a group, with several of their previous offspring living in the group
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Colombia
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Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a transcontinental country largely situated in the northwest of South America, with territories in Central America. Colombia shares a border to the northwest with Panama, to the east with Venezuela and Brazil and to the south with Ecuador and it shares its maritime limits with Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Jamaica, Haiti and the Dominican Republic. It is a unitary, constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments, the territory of what is now Colombia was originally inhabited by indigenous peoples including the Muisca, the Quimbaya and the Tairona. The Spanish arrived in 1499 and initiated a period of conquest and colonization ultimately creating the Viceroyalty of New Granada, independence from Spain was won in 1819, but by 1830 the Gran Colombia Federation was dissolved. What is now Colombia and Panama emerged as the Republic of New Granada, the new nation experimented with federalism as the Granadine Confederation, and then the United States of Colombia, before the Republic of Colombia was finally declared in 1886. Since the 1960s the country has suffered from an asymmetric low-intensity armed conflict, Colombia is one of the most ethnically and linguistically diverse countries in the world, and thereby possesses a rich cultural heritage. Cultural diversity has also influenced by Colombias varied geography. The urban centres are located in the highlands of the Andes mountains. Colombian territory also encompasses Amazon rainforest, tropical grassland and both Caribbean and Pacific coastlines, ecologically, it is one of the worlds 17 megadiverse countries, and the most densely biodiverse of these per square kilometer. Colombia is a power and a regional actor with the fourth-largest economy in Latin America, is part of the CIVETS group of six leading emerging markets and is an accessing member to the OECD. Colombia has an economy with macroeconomic stability and favorable growth prospects in the long run. The name Colombia is derived from the last name of Christopher Columbus and it was conceived by the Venezuelan revolutionary Francisco de Miranda as a reference to all the New World, but especially to those portions under Spanish and Portuguese rule. The name was adopted by the Republic of Colombia of 1819. When Venezuela, Ecuador and Cundinamarca came to exist as independent states, New Granada officially changed its name in 1858 to the Granadine Confederation. In 1863 the name was changed, this time to United States of Colombia. To refer to country, the Colombian government uses the terms Colombia. Owing to its location, the present territory of Colombia was a corridor of early human migration from Mesoamerica, the oldest archaeological finds are from the Pubenza and El Totumo sites in the Magdalena Valley 100 km southwest of Bogotá. These sites date from the Paleoindian period, at Puerto Hormiga and other sites, traces from the Archaic Period have been found
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Ecuador
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Ecuador also includes the Galápagos Islands in the Pacific, about 1,000 kilometres west of the mainland. What is now Ecuador was home to a variety of Amerindian groups that were incorporated into the Inca Empire during the 15th century. The territory was colonized by Spain during the 16th century, achieving independence in 1820 as part of Gran Colombia, Spanish is the official language and is spoken by a majority of the population, though 13 Amerindian languages are also recognized, including Quichua and Shuar. The capital city is Quito, while the largest city is Guayaquil, in reflection of the countrys rich cultural heritage, the historical center of Quito was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1978. Cuenca, the third-largest city, was declared a World Heritage Site in 1999 as an outstanding example of a planned. Ecuador has an economy that is highly dependent on commodities, namely petroleum. The country is classified as a medium-income country, Ecuador is a democratic presidential republic. The new constitution of 2008 is the first in the world to recognize legally enforceable Rights of Nature, Ecuador is also known for its rich ecology, hosting many endemic plants and animals, such as those of the Galápagos Islands. It is one of 17 megadiverse countries in the world, various peoples had settled in the area of the future Ecuador before the arrival of the Incas. They developed different languages while emerging as unique ethnic groups, even though their languages were unrelated, these groups developed similar groups of cultures, each based in different environments. Over time these groups began to interact and intermingle with each other so that groups of families in one area became one community or tribe, with a similar language and culture. Many civilizations arose in Ecuador, such as the Valdivia Culture and Machalilla Culture on the coast, the Quitus, each civilization developed its own distinctive architecture, pottery, and religious interests. Eventually, through wars and marriage alliances of their leaders, a group of nations formed confederations, one region consolidated under a confederation called the Shyris, which exercised organized trading and bartering between the different regions. Its political and military came under the rule of the Duchicela blood-line. The native confederations that gave them the most problems were deported to distant areas of Peru, Bolivia, similarly, a number of loyal Inca subjects from Peru and Bolivia were brought to Ecuador to prevent rebellion. Thus, the region of highland Ecuador became part of the Inca Empire in 1463 sharing the same language, in contrast, when the Incas made incursions into coastal Ecuador and the eastern Amazon jungles of Ecuador, they found both the environment and indigenous people more hostile. Moreover, when the Incas tried to subdue them, these indigenous people withdrew to the interior, as a result, Inca expansion into the Amazon basin and the Pacific coast of Ecuador was hampered. The indigenous people of the Amazon jungle and coastal Ecuador remained relatively autonomous until the Spanish soldiers, the Amazonian people and the Cayapas of Coastal Ecuador were the only groups to resist Inca and Spanish domination, maintaining their language and culture well into the 21st century
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Mexico
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Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a federal republic in the southern half of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States, to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean, to the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea, and to the east by the Gulf of Mexico. Covering almost two million square kilometers, Mexico is the sixth largest country in the Americas by total area, Mexico is a federation comprising 31 states and a federal district that is also its capital and most populous city. Other metropolises include Guadalajara, Monterrey, Puebla, Toluca, Tijuana, pre-Columbian Mexico was home to many advanced Mesoamerican civilizations, such as the Olmec, Toltec, Teotihuacan, Zapotec, Maya and Aztec before first contact with Europeans. In 1521, the Spanish Empire conquered and colonized the territory from its base in Mexico-Tenochtitlan, Three centuries later, this territory became Mexico following recognition in 1821 after the colonys Mexican War of Independence. The tumultuous post-independence period was characterized by instability and many political changes. The Mexican–American War led to the cession of the extensive northern borderlands, one-third of its territory. The Pastry War, the Franco-Mexican War, a civil war, the dictatorship was overthrown in the Mexican Revolution of 1910, which culminated with the promulgation of the 1917 Constitution and the emergence of the countrys current political system. Mexico has the fifteenth largest nominal GDP and the eleventh largest by purchasing power parity, the Mexican economy is strongly linked to those of its North American Free Trade Agreement partners, especially the United States. Mexico was the first Latin American member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and it is classified as an upper-middle income country by the World Bank and a newly industrialized country by several analysts. By 2050, Mexico could become the fifth or seventh largest economy. The country is considered both a power and middle power, and is often identified as an emerging global power. Due to its culture and history, Mexico ranks first in the Americas. Mexico is a country, ranking fourth in the world by biodiversity. In 2015 it was the 9th most visited country in the world, Mexico is a member of the United Nations, the World Trade Organization, the G8+5, the G20, the Uniting for Consensus and the Pacific Alliance. Mēxihco is the Nahuatl term for the heartland of the Aztec Empire, namely, the Valley of Mexico, and its people, the Mexica and this became the future State of Mexico as a division of New Spain prior to independence. It is generally considered to be a toponym for the valley became the primary ethnonym for the Aztec Triple Alliance as a result. After New Spain won independence from Spain, representatives decided to name the new country after its capital and this was founded in 1524 on top of the ancient Mexica capital of Mexico-Tenochtitlan
23.
White-headed capuchin
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The white-headed capuchin, also known as the white-faced capuchin or white-throated capuchin, is a medium-sized New World monkey of the family Cebidae, subfamily Cebinae. Among the best known monkeys, the white-headed capuchin is recognized as the companion to the organ grinder. In recent years the species has become popular in North American media and it is a highly intelligent monkey and has been trained to assist paraplegic persons. It is a monkey, weighing up to 3.9 kg. It is mostly black, but with a face and white on much of the front part of the body. It has a prehensile tail that is often carried coiled up and is used to help support the monkey when it is feeding beneath a branch. It lives in troops that can exceed 20 animals and include males and females. It is noted for its use, including rubbing plants over its body in an apparent use of herbal medicine. It is a monkey, with a maximum recorded age of over 44 years. White-headed capuchins are highly social, living in groups of 16 individuals on average, groups consists of related females, immigrant males, and offspring. On average, females birth offspring every 27 months even though they mate throughout the year, females tend to stay within their original group while males leave their natal group when they are 4 years old and change groups every 4 years after. Both male and female capuchins exhibit different dominance behaviors within the group, the white-headed capuchin was one of the many species originally described by Linnaeus in his 18th century work, Systema Naturae. It is a member of the family Cebidae, the family of New World monkeys containing capuchin monkeys, squirrel monkeys, tamarins and it is the type species for the genus Cebus, the genus that includes all the capuchin monkeys. It is a member of the C. capucinus species group within the genus Cebus, a group also includes the white-fronted capuchin, the weeper capuchin. There is disagreement among primatologists about whether there are any subspecies of white-headed capuchin, like other monkeys in the genus Cebus, the white-headed capuchin is named after the order of Capuchin friars – the cowls of these friars closely resemble the monkeys head coloration. The white-headed capuchin has mostly black fur, with white to yellow like fur on the neck, throat, chest, shoulders, the face is pink or a white-cream color and may have identifying marks such as dark brows or dark fur patches. An area of black fur on the crown of the head is distinctive and it has a prehensile tail that is often held coiled, giving the white-headed capuchin the nickname ringtail. Adults reach a length of between 335 and 453 mm, excluding tail, and a weight of up to 3.9 kg, the tail is longer than the body, at up to 551 mm in length
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Panamanian night monkey
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The Panamanian night monkey or Chocoan night monkey is a species of night monkey formerly considered a subspecies of the gray-bellied night monkey of the family Aotidae. Its range consists of Panama and the Chocó region of Colombia, there are also unconfirmed reports of its occurrence in Costa Rica, especially on the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica. The species definitely occurs in the Atlantic lowlands of Panama close to the Costa Rica border, the exact classification of the Panamanian Night Monkey is uncertain. The Panamanian night monkey is a small monkey, with males weighing approximately 889 grams. The fur on the ranges from grayish brown to reddish brown. The hair on the back of the hands and feet is black or dark brown, other distinguishing features relate to its skull, which has a broad braincase, a depressed interorbital region, and large molariform teeth. Like other night monkeys, the Panamanian night monkey has large eyes, but unlike many nocturnal animal species, its eyes do not have a tapetum lucidum. Also like other night monkeys, it has a short tail relative to the body size, the Panamanian night monkey is arboreal and nocturnal. It and the members of the genus Aotus are the only nocturnal monkeys. It is found in types of forest, including secondary forest. It lives in groups of between two and six monkeys, consisting of an adult pair and one infant and several juveniles and/or subadults. Groups are territorial, and groups occupy ranges that overlap only slightly, vocal, olfactory and behavioral forms of communication have all been recorded. At least nine vocal calls have been reported, including types of grunts, screams, squeals, moans. Males develop a scent gland near their tail at the age of one year that is used for scent marking. Urine washing, in urine is rubbed on the hands. The Panamanian night monkey generally walks on all four legs, although it is capable of leaping or running when necessary and it eats a variety of foods. In one study, on Barro Colorado Island in Panama, its diet was found to consist of 65% fruits, 30% leaves, in common with other night monkeys, the Panamanian night monkey is one of the few monogamous monkeys. The monogamous pair generally gives birth to a single infant each year, the gestation period is about 133 days
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Geoffroy's tamarin
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Geoffroys tamarin, also known as the Panamanian, red-crested or rufous-naped tamarin, is a tamarin, a type of small monkey, found in Panama and Colombia. It is predominantly black and white, with a reddish nape, diurnal, Geoffroys tamarin spends most of its time in trees, but does come down to the ground occasionally. It lives in groups that most often number between three and five individuals, and generally one or more adults of each sex. It eats a variety of foods, including insects, exudates, fruits, insects and fruits account for the majority of its diet, but exudates are also important. But since its teeth are not adapted for gouging trees to get to the sap, although a variety of reproductive methods are used, the most common is for a single adult female in the group to be reproductively active and to mate with multiple adult males in the group. After a gestation period of about 145 days, she gives birth to either an infant or twins. Males contribute significantly to care of the infants, sexual maturity is reached at about 2 years, and it can live up to 13 years. Geoffroys tamarin is classified as being of least concern by the IUCN, like the other tamarins and marmosets, Geoffroys tamarin is a New World monkey classified within the family Callitrichidae. It is a member the genus Saguinus, the genus containing most tamarins, however, more recent research indicates that the two taxa differ sufficiently to be considered separate species. In common with other callitrichides, Geoffroys tamarin is a small monkey, with a length of between 225 and 240 millimetres, excluding the tail, it is the smallest Central American monkey. The tail length is between 314 and 386 millimetres, males have an average weight of 486 grams, and females are slightly larger on average, with an average weight of 507 grams. The fur on its back is variegated black and yellow, with legs, feet. Its face is bare, but the head has reddish fur with a triangle-shaped patch in the front of the head. The tail is chestnut-red and has a black tip, like all callitrichides, Geoffroys tamarin is diurnal and arboreal. Unlike some other New World monkeys, it come down to the ground occasionally. This is normally only in special circumstances, such as to acquire certain foods or to get to a tree it cannot otherwise reach. Group size is generally between three and nine monkeys, with three to five being most common, groups often consist of more than one adult of each sex. Adults of both sexes migrate between groups, groups show some degree of territorial defense
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Panama
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Panama, officially called the Republic of Panama, is a country usually considered to be entirely in North America or Central America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, the capital and largest city is Panama City, whose metropolitan area is home to nearly half of the countrys 4.1 million people. Panama was inhabited by indigenous tribes prior to settlement by the Spanish in the 16th century. Panama broke away from Spain in 1821 and joined a union of Nueva Granada, Ecuador, when Gran Colombia dissolved in 1831, Panama and Nueva Granada remained joined, eventually becoming the Republic of Colombia. With the backing of the United States, Panama seceded from Colombia in 1903, in 1977 an agreement was signed for the total transfer of the Canal from the United States to Panama by the end of the 20th century, which culminated on 31 December 1999. Revenue from canal tolls continues to represent a significant portion of Panamas GDP, although commerce, banking, in 2015 Panama ranked 60th in the world in terms of the Human Development Index. Since 2010, Panama remains the second most competitive economy in Latin America, covering around 40 percent of its land area, Panamas jungles are home to an abundance of tropical plants and animals – some of them to be found nowhere else on the planet. There are several theories about the origin of the name Panama, some believe that the country was named after a commonly found species of tree. Others believe that the first settlers arrived in Panama in August, when butterflies abound, the best-known version is that a fishing village and its nearby beach bore the name Panamá, which meant an abundance of fish. Captain Antonio Tello de Guzmán, while exploring the Pacific side in 1515, in 1517 Don Gaspar De Espinosa, a Spanish lieutenant, decided to settle a post there. In 1519 Pedrarias Dávila decided to establish the Empires Pacific city in this site, the new settlement replaced Santa María La Antigua del Darién, which had lost its function within the Crowns global plan after the beginning of the Spanish exploitation of the riches in the Pacific. Blending all of the above together, Panamanians believe in general that the word Panama means abundance of fish and this is the official definition given in social studies textbooks approved by the Ministry of Education in Panama. However, others believe the word Panama comes from the Kuna word bannaba which means distant or far away, at the time of the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century, the known inhabitants of Panama included the Cuevas and the Coclé tribes. These people have disappeared, as they had no immunity from European infectious diseases. The earliest discovered artifacts of indigenous peoples in Panama include Paleo-Indian projectile points, later central Panama was home to some of the first pottery-making in the Americas, for example the cultures at Monagrillo, which date back to 2500–1700 BC. These evolved into significant populations best known through their spectacular burials at the Monagrillo archaeological site, the monumental monolithic sculptures at the Barriles site are also important traces of these ancient isthmian cultures. Before Europeans arrived Panama was widely settled by Chibchan, Chocoan, the largest group were the Cueva. The size of the population of the isthmus at the time of European colonization is uncertain
27.
Central American squirrel monkey
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The Central American squirrel monkey is a squirrel monkey species from the Pacific coast of Costa Rica and Panama. It is restricted to the tip of Panama near the border with Costa Rica. It is a monkey with an orange back and a distinctive white. It has a diet, eating fruits, other plant materials, invertebrates. In turn, it has a number of predators, including raptors, cats and it lives in large groups that typically contain between 20 and 75 monkeys. It has one of the most egalitarian social structures of all monkeys, females do not form dominance hierarchies, and males do so only at breeding season. Females become sexually mature at 2½ years, and males at 4 to 5 years, sexually mature females leave the natal group, but males can remain with their natal group their entire life. The Central American squirrel monkey can live for more than 15 years, the Central American squirrel monkey population declined precipitously after the 1970s. This decline is believed to be caused by deforestation, hunting, efforts are underway to preserve the species. Despite the threats to the population, in 2008 the International Union for Conservation of Nature upgraded its status from endangered to vulnerable. The Central American squirrel monkey is a member of the family Cebidae, within the family Cebidae, it is a member of the subfamily Saimiriinae, the subfamily containing squirrel monkeys. It is one of five recognized species of monkey. The Central American Squirrel Monkey is placed in genus Saimiri along with all the other squirrel monkey species, the binomial name Saimiri oerstedii was given by Johannes Theodor Reinhardt in honor of his fellow Danish biologist Anders Sandøe Ørsted. O. oerstedii lives in the western Pacific portion of Panama, the largest estimate is that the remaining wild population of S. o. citrinellus is only 1,300 to 1,800 individuals. The Central American squirrel monkey differs in coloration from South American squirrel monkeys, while South American squirrel monkeys tend to be primarily greenish in color, the Central American species has an orange back with olive shoulders, hips and tail and white undersides. The hands and feet are also orange, there is a black cap at the top of the head, and a black tip at the end of the tail. Males generally have lighter caps than females, the face is white with black rims around the eyes and black around the nose and mouth. The two subspecies are similar in coloration, but differ in the shade of the cap, the northern subspecies, living in Central Pacific Costa Rica, has a lighter cap than the southern subspecies, which lives in Panama and in parts of Costa Rica near Panama
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Pacific Ocean
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The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of the Earths oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south and is bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, the Mariana Trench in the western North Pacific is the deepest point in the world, reaching a depth of 10,911 metres. Both the center of the Water Hemisphere and the Western Hemisphere are in the Pacific Ocean, the oceans current name was coined by Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan during the Spanish circumnavigation of the world in 1521, as he encountered favourable winds on reaching the ocean. He called it Mar Pacífico, which in both Portuguese and Spanish means peaceful sea, important human migrations occurred in the Pacific in prehistoric times. Long-distance trade developed all along the coast from Mozambique to Japan, trade, and therefore knowledge, extended to the Indonesian islands but apparently not Australia. By at least 878 when there was a significant Islamic settlement in Canton much of trade was controlled by Arabs or Muslims. In 219 BC Xu Fu sailed out into the Pacific searching for the elixir of immortality, from 1404 to 1433 Zheng He led expeditions into the Indian Ocean. The east side of the ocean was discovered by Spanish explorer Vasco Núñez de Balboa in 1513 after his expedition crossed the Isthmus of Panama and he named it Mar del Sur because the ocean was to the south of the coast of the isthmus where he first observed the Pacific. Later, Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan sailed the Pacific East to West on a Castilian expedition of world circumnavigation starting in 1519, Magellan called the ocean Pacífico because, after sailing through the stormy seas off Cape Horn, the expedition found calm waters. The ocean was often called the Sea of Magellan in his honor until the eighteenth century, sailing around and east of the Moluccas, between 1525 and 1527, Portuguese expeditions discovered the Caroline Islands, the Aru Islands, and Papua New Guinea. In 1542–43 the Portuguese also reached Japan, in 1564, five Spanish ships consisting of 379 explorers crossed the ocean from Mexico led by Miguel López de Legazpi and sailed to the Philippines and Mariana Islands. The Manila galleons operated for two and a half centuries linking Manila and Acapulco, in one of the longest trade routes in history, Spanish expeditions also discovered Tuvalu, the Marquesas, the Cook Islands, the Solomon Islands, and the Admiralty Islands in the South Pacific. In the 16th and 17th century Spain considered the Pacific Ocean a Mare clausum—a sea closed to other naval powers, as the only known entrance from the Atlantic the Strait of Magellan was at times patrolled by fleets sent to prevent entrance of non-Spanish ships. On the western end of the Pacific Ocean the Dutch threatened the Spanish Philippines, Spain also sent expeditions to the Pacific Northwest reaching Vancouver Island in southern Canada, and Alaska. The French explored and settled Polynesia, and the British made three voyages with James Cook to the South Pacific and Australia, Hawaii, and the North American Pacific Northwest, one of the earliest voyages of scientific exploration was organized by Spain in the Malaspina Expedition of 1789–1794. It sailed vast areas of the Pacific, from Cape Horn to Alaska, Guam and the Philippines, New Zealand, Australia, and the South Pacific. Growing imperialism during the 19th century resulted in the occupation of much of Oceania by other European powers, and later, Japan, in Oceania, France got a leading position as imperial power after making Tahiti and New Caledonia protectorates in 1842 and 1853 respectively. After navy visits to Easter Island in 1875 and 1887, Chilean navy officer Policarpo Toro managed to negotiate an incorporation of the island into Chile with native Rapanui in 1888, by occupying Easter Island, Chile joined the imperial nations
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Costa Rica
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It has a population of around 4.5 million, of whom nearly a quarter live in the metropolitan area of the capital and largest city, San José. Costa Rica was sparsely inhabited by people before coming under Spanish rule in the 16th century. Since then, Costa Rica has remained among the most stable, prosperous, following a brief civil war, it permanently abolished its army in 1949, becoming one of only a few sovereign nations without a standing army. Costa Rica is a member of the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie. The country has consistently performed favourably in the Human Development Index, placing 69th in the world as of 2015 and its rapidly developing economy, once heavily dependent on agriculture, has diversified to include sectors such as finance, pharmaceuticals, and ecotourism. Costa Rica is known for its environmental policies, being the only country to meet all five UNDP criteria established to measure environmental sustainability. Costa Rica officially plans to become a country by 2021. In 2012, it became the first country in the Americas to ban recreational hunting, historians have classified the indigenous people of Costa Rica as belonging to the Intermediate Area, where the peripheries of the Mesoamerican and Andean native cultures overlapped. More recently, pre-Columbian Costa Rica has also described as part of the Isthmo-Colombian Area. The oldest evidence of occupation in Costa Rica is associated with the arrival of various groups of hunter-gatherers about 10,000 to 7,000 years BCE in the Turrialba Valley. The presence of Clovis culture type spearheads and arrows from South America opens the possibility that, in this area, agriculture became evident in the populations that lived in Costa Rica about 5,000 years ago. They mainly grew tubers and roots, for the first and second millennia BCE there were already settled farming communities. These were small and scattered, although the transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture as the livelihood in the territory is still unknown. The earliest use of pottery appears around 2,000 to 3,000 BCE, shards of pots, cylindrical vases, platters, gourds and other forms of vases decorated with grooves, prints, and some modelled after animals have been found. The impact of indigenous peoples on modern Costa Rican culture has been small compared to other nations. Costa Rica was described as the poorest and most miserable Spanish colony in all America by a Spanish governor in 1719, for all these reasons, Costa Rica was, by and large, unappreciated and overlooked by the Spanish Crown and left to develop on its own. Costa Rica became a democracy with no oppressed mestizo or indigenous class. It was not long before Spanish settlers turned to the hills, where they found rich volcanic soil, like the rest of Central America, Costa Rica never fought for independence from Spain
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El Salvador
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El Salvador, officially the Republic of El Salvador, is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. El Salvadors capital and largest city is San Salvador, as of 2015, the country had a population of approximately 6.38 million, consisting largely of Mestizos of European and Indigenous American descent. El Salvador was for centuries inhabited by several Mesoamerican nations, especially the Cuzcatlecs, as well as the Lenca, in the early 16th century, the Spanish Empire conquered the territory, incorporating it into the Viceroyalty of New Spain ruled from Mexico City. In 1821, the country achieved independence from Spain as part of the First Mexican Empire, from the late 19th to the mid-20th century, El Salvador endured chronic political and economic instability characterized by coups, revolts, and a succession of authoritarian rulers. The conflict ended with a settlement that established a multiparty constitutional republic. El Salvador has since reduced its dependence on coffee and embarked on diversifying the economy by opening up trade and financial links, the colón, the official currency of El Salvador since 1892, was replaced by the U. S. dollar in 2001. As of 2010, El Salvador ranks 12th among Latin American countries in terms of the Human Development Index, however, the country continues to struggle with high rates of poverty, inequality, and crime. Conquistador Pedro de Alvarado named the new province for Jesus Christ – El Salvador, the full name was Provincia De Nuestro Señor Jesus Cristo, El Salvador Del Mundo, which was subsequently abbreviated to El Salvador. Tomayate is a site located on the banks of the river of the same name in the municipality of Apopa. The site has produced abundant Salvadoran megafauna fossils belonging to the Pleistocene epoch, at the same time, it is considered the richest vertebrate paleontological site in Central America and one of the largest accumulations of proboscideans in the Americas. Sophisticated civilization in El Salvador dates to its settlement by the indigenous Lenca people, theirs was the first, the Lenca were succeeded by the Olmecs, who eventually also disappeared, leaving their monumental architecture in the form of the pyramids still extant in western El Salvador. The Maya arrived and settled in place of the Olmecs, the Pipil were the last indigenous people to arrive in El Salvador. They called their territory Kuskatan, a Pipil word meaning The Place of Precious Jewels, backformed into Classical Nahuatl Cōzcatlān, the people of El Salvador today are referred to as Salvadoran, while the term Cuzcatleco is commonly used to identify someone of Salvadoran heritage. In pre-Columbian times, the country was inhabited by various other indigenous peoples, including the Lenca. Cuzcatlan was the domain until the Spanish conquest. Since El Salvador resided on the edge of the Maya Civilization. However, it is agreed that Mayas likely occupied the areas around Lago de Guija. Other ruins such as Tazumal, Joya de Cerén and San Andrés may have built by the Pipil or the Maya or possibly both
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Guatemalan black howler
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The Guatemalan black howler, or Yucatan black howler, is a species of howler monkey, a type of New World monkey, from Central America. It is found in Belize, Guatemala and Mexico, in and it lives in evergreen, semideciduous and lowland rain forests. It is also known as the baboon in Belize, although it is not closely related to the baboons in Africa, the Guatemalan black howler is the largest of the howler monkey species and one of the largest of the New World monkeys. Guatemalan black howler males are larger than those of any other Central American monkey species, on average, males weigh 11.4 kg and females weigh 6.4 kg. The body is between 521 and 639 mm in length, excluding the tail, the tail is between 590 and 690 mm long. Adults of both sexes have long, black hair and a tail, while infants have brown fur. Males over four months old have white scrotums, the Guatemalan black howler shares several adaptations with other species of howler monkey that allow it to pursue a folivorous diet. Its molars have high shearing crests, to help it eat the leaves, and this hyoid bone amplifies the male howlers calls, allowing it to locate other males without expending much energy, which is important, since leaves are a low-energy food. Howling occurs primarily at dawn and at dusk, the Guatemalan black howler is diurnal and arboreal. It lives in groups of one or two adult males, with a ratio of about 1.3 females for every male. Groups generally have two and 10 members, including juveniles, but groups as large as 16 members have been studied. The home range is between 3 and 25 hectares, population density can exceed 250 monkeys per square kilometer in the Community Baboon Sanctuary in Belize. The Guatemalan black howlers diet includes leaves and fruit. Flowers also make up a part of the diet. The breadnut tree can provide as much as 86% of the diet during some seasons. As with other monkey species, the majority of the Guatemalan black howlers day is spent resting. Eating makes up about a quarter of the day, moving about 10% of the day, females reach sexual maturity at four, and males reach sexual maturity between six and eight years old. Males leave their natal group upon reaching maturity, but females generally remain with their natal group
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Critically Endangered
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A critically endangered species is one which has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild. Its the highest risk category assigned by the IUCN Red List for wild species, as of 2014, there are 2464 animal and 2104 plant species with this assessment, compared with 1998 levels of 854 and 909, respectively. As the IUCN Red List does not consider a species extinct until extensive, targeted surveys have been conducted, IUCN maintains a list of possibly extinct CR and possibly extinct in the wild CR species, modelled on categories used by BirdLife International to categorize these taxa. To be defined as critically endangered in the Red List, a species must meet any of the criteria, A, Occurring over less than 100 km². Severe habitat fragmentation or existing at just one location 2, decline in extent of occurrence, area of occupancy, area/extent/quality of habitat, number of locations/subpopulations, or amount of MI.3. Extreme fluctuations in extent of occurrence, area of occupancy, number of locations/subpopulations, B, As above, but less than 10 km². C, Declining population of less than 250 MI and either,1, a decline of 25% over 3G/10Y,2. Extreme fluctuations, or over 90% of MI in a single subpopulation, D, Numbers less than 50 MI. E, At least 50% chance of going Extinct in the Wild over 3G/10Y, lists of IUCN Red List Critically Endangered species for lists ordered by taxonomic rank. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, International Union for Conservation of Nature. The Criteria for Critically Endangered, IUCN
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International Union for Conservation of Nature
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The International Union for Conservation of Nature is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. It is involved in gathering and analysis, research, field projects, advocacy, lobbying. IUCNs mission is to influence, encourage and assist societies throughout the world to conserve nature and to ensure that any use of resources is equitable. Over the past decades, IUCN has widened its focus beyond conservation ecology and now incorporates issues related to equality, poverty alleviation. Unlike other international NGOs, IUCN does not itself aim to mobilize the public in support of nature conservation and it tries to influence the actions of governments, business and other stakeholders by providing information and advice, and through lobbying and partnerships. The organization is best known to the public for compiling and publishing the IUCN Red List. IUCN has a membership of over 1200 governmental and non-governmental organizations, some 11,000 scientists and experts participate in the work of IUCN commissions on a voluntary basis. It employs approximately 1000 full-time staff in more than 60 countries and its headquarters are in Gland, Switzerland. IUCN has observer and consultative status at the United Nations, and plays a role in the implementation of several conventions on nature conservation. It was involved in establishing the World Wide Fund for Nature, in the past, IUCN has been criticized for placing the interests of nature over those of indigenous peoples. In recent years, its relations with the business sector have caused controversy. It was previously called the International Union for Protection of Nature, establishment In 1947, the Swiss League for the Protection of Nature organised an international conference on the protection of nature in Brunnen. It is considered to be the first government-organized non-governmental organization, the initiative to set up the new organisation came from UNESCO and especially from its first Director General, the British biologist Julian Huxley. At the time of its founding IUPN was the international organisation focusing on the entire spectrum of nature conservation Early years. Its secretariat was located in Brussels and its first work program focused on saving species and habitats, increasing and applying knowledge, advancing education, promoting international agreements and promoting conservation. Providing a solid base for conservation action was the heart of all activities. IUPN and UNESCO were closely associated and they jointly organized the 1949 Conference on Protection of Nature. In preparation for this conference a list of endangered species was drawn up for the first time
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Endangered species
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An endangered species is a species which has been categorized as likely to become extinct. In 2012, the IUCN Red List featured 3079 animal and 2655 plant species as endangered worldwide, the figures for 1998 were, respectively,1102 and 1197. Many nations have laws that protect conservation-reliant species, for example, population numbers, trends and species conservation status can be found in the lists of organisms by population. The conservation status of a species indicates the likelihood that it will become extinct, the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species is the best-known worldwide conservation status listing and ranking system. Over 40% of the species are estimated to be at risk of extinction. Internationally,199 countries have signed an accord to create Biodiversity Action Plans that will protect endangered, in the United States, such plans are usually called Species Recovery Plans. Those species of Near Threatened and Least Concern status have been assessed and found to have relatively robust and healthy populations, though these may be in decline. The IUCN categories, with examples of animals classified by them, include, Extinct Extinct in the wild Captive individuals survive, critically endangered Faces an extremely high risk of extinction in the immediate future. Endangered Faces a high risk of extinction in the near future, vulnerable Faces a high risk of endangerment in the medium term. Near-threatened May be considered threatened in the near future, Least concern No immediate threat to species survival. A population size reduction of ≥ 50%, projected or suspected to be met within the next 10 years or three generations, whichever is the longer, based on any of to under A1. E) Quantitative analysis showing the probability of extinction in the wild is at least 20% within 20 years or five generations, there is data from the United States that shows a correlation between human populations and threatened and endangered species. Under the Endangered Species Act in the United States, species may be listed as endangered or threatened, the Salt Creek tiger beetle is an example of an endangered subspecies protected under the ESA. Some endangered species laws are controversial, also lobbying from hunters and various industries like the petroleum industry, construction industry, and logging, has been an obstacle in establishing endangered species laws. The Bush administration lifted a policy that required federal officials to consult an expert before taking actions that could damage endangered species. Under the Obama administration, this policy has been reinstated, being listed as an endangered species can have negative effect since it could make a species more desirable for collectors and poachers. This effect is potentially reducible, such as in China where commercially farmed turtles may be reducing some of the pressure to poach endangered species. Another problem with the species is its effect of inciting the use of the shoot, shovel
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Vulnerable species
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Vulnerability is mainly caused by habitat loss or destruction of the species home. Vulnerable habitat or species are monitored and can become increasingly threatened, some species listed as vulnerable may be common in captivity, an example being the military macaw. There are currently 5196 animals and 6789 plants classified as vulnerable, compared with 1998 levels of 2815 and 3222, practices such as Cryoconservation of animal genetic resources have been enforced in efforts to conserve vulnerable breeds of livestock specifically. The International Union for Conservation of Nature uses several criteria to enter species in this category, a reduction of at least 20%, projected or suspected to be met within the next ten years or three generations, whichever is the longer, based on any of, or above. Population is characterised by a restriction in its area of occupancy or in the number of locations. E) Quantitative analysis showing the probability of extinction in the wild is at least 10% within 100 years
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Least Concern
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A least concern species is one which has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as evaluated but not qualified for any other category. As such they do not qualify as threatened, near threatened, species cannot be assigned the Least Concern category unless they have had their population status evaluated. That is, adequate information is needed to make a direct, or indirect, since 2001 the category has had the abbreviation LC, following the IUCN2001 Categories & Criteria. However, around 20% of least concern taxa in the IUCN database use the code LR/lc, prior to 2001 least concern was a subcategory of the Lower Risk category and assigned the code LR/lc or. While least concern is not considered a red listed category by the IUCN, the number of animal species listed in this category totals 14033. There are also 101 animal subspecies listed and 1500 plant taxa, there are also two animal subpopulations listed, the Australasian and Southern African subpopulations of spiny dogfish. No fungi or protista have the classification, though only four species in those kingdoms have been evaluated by the IUCN, humans qualify for this category, and in 2008 were formally assessed as such by the IUCN
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Corcovado National Park
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Corcovado National Park is a National Park on the Osa Peninsula in Osa, southwestern Costa Rica, which is part of the Osa Conservation Area. It was established on 24 October 1975, and encompasses an area of 424 square kilometres and it is the largest park in Costa Rica and protects about a third of the Osa Peninsula. It is widely considered the jewel in the extensive system of national parks. The ecological variety is quite stunning, National Geographic has called it the most biologically intense place on Earth in terms of biodiversity. Not only is the very popular with tropical ecologists, a visitor can expect to see an abundance of wildlife. One should come well prepared though, the park conserves the largest primary forest on the American Pacific coastline and one of the few remaining sizable areas of lowland tropical forests in the world. Historically, logging has taken place in lowland areas because those areas are easily accessible. But those habitats, which feature diverse vegetation, are usually the richest in biodiversity. Larger animals, especially, need a large free of human activity. Waters of the park are calm and rich in biodiversity, cano Island Biological Reserve is one of featured reserves along the coasts. These coasts, such as at Drake Bay, are wintering and breeding grounds for the whales that come each winter. Ballena National Marine Park is specially designed for this species, other baleen whales also migrate through the area such as Brydes whale. Dolphins such as spinner and rough-toothed, and smaller such as false killer whales. Whale watchings for these species are also available, manatees have been hunted historically in Costa Rica, resulting in todays small numbers left. These gentle mammals can be observed occasionally at areas like Manzanillo Beach, Talamanca, as of August 2014, admission is $15 per person per day for non-Costa Rican residents. Reservations for overnight visits in the park can be made in Puerto Jiménez on the east coast of the peninsula, one may camp or stay indoors at one of several ranger stations equipped with bunks. If one wants basic meals served, reservations should be made about a week in advance, take note that researchers get preference over other visitors. One can make day visits into the park from several lodging options on both the north and south entrances to the park, as well as through organized excursions that fly into the park, one can get to the Corcovado National Park via Puerto Jimenez or Drake Bay
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Manuel Antonio National Park
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Established in 1972 with a land area enumerating 1983 ha, it is the destination of as many as 150,000 visitors annually and well known for its beautiful beaches and hiking trails. In 2011, Manuel Antonio was listed by Forbes among the worlds 12 most beautiful national parks and this park has one of the most impressive landscapes in the world and has several coves with many white sand beaches and lush foliage amidst great mountains and forests that reach the beaches. Additionally, it is located in the tropical forest, four beaches are contained within the limits of the park, Manuel Antonio, Espadilla Sur, Teloro, and Playita. With their large light sand berms, it is easy to see why they attract beach goers of all ages, the first is separated from the second by a tombolo, or natural land bridge formed by sand accumulations. Visitors may enjoy a roughly hour-long hike from Espadilla to the top of Punta Catedral, both Manuel Antonio and Espadilla Sur contain tidal pools and offer the possibility of snorkeling. There is a program, but precaution must be taken. Although Manuel Antonio National Park is Costa Ricas smallest national park, black spiny-tailed iguana, green iguana, common basilisk, white-nosed coati and many snake and bat species are also common in the park. Included in the 184 bird species are toucans, woodpeckers, potoos, motmots, tanagers, turkey vulture, parakeets, dolphins can be observed there, as well as the occasional migrating whale. Scuba diving, snorkeling, sea kayaking, mountain biking, Manuel Antonio is Costa Ricas second most visited park behind the Poás Volcano National Park which lies very close to San José, the countrys largest urban area. The parks popularity has led to development of the areas, with environmental impacts to nearby forests. The Pacific Ocean in front of Manuel Antonio Park is also world-renowned for its fishing, from November to April it is not uncommon for a typical angler to release multiple billfish in the over-100-pound range. Among the main attractions are the beaches surrounded by rainforest, because of this, the park attracts surfers, swimmers, birders and ecotourists
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Santa Rosa National Park
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Santa Rosa National Park, in Spanish the Parque Nacional Santa Rosa, is a national park, in Guanacaste Province, northwestern Costa Rica. It was the first national park established in Costa Rica, created in 1971, the main entrance of Santa Rosa National Park is 36 kilometres north of Liberia, in northern Guanacaste Province. The park covers an area of approximately 495 square kilometres and it is part of the Area de Conservación Guanacaste World Heritage site, originally created to protect the scene of the Battle of Santa Rosa. It is also within the larger national Guanacaste Conservation Area, the Interamerican Highway is along its eastern edge, where the adjacent Guanacaste National Park is located. Santa Rosa was originally a farm located in the north-western Guanacaste Province, today an old hacienda building, La Casona, functions as the monument commemorating the fallen heroes of the different battles that took place here. Primarily, Costa Rica remembers the Battle of Santa Rosa won by their army over the forces of filibuster William Walker, on March 20,1856, when the Costa Rican forces reached this point, the filibusters were housed in the main farm building, La Casona. The ensuing battle lasted all of 14 minutes with the national militia victorious in ousting the invaders, the farm however kept for years its strategic significance. This place was the location of two battles of Costa Rican forces against invading forces from Nicaragua. Santa Rosa National Park was also created to protect the environment beyond the historical site. Ten unique natural habitats are within in the park and they include savannas, deciduous forest, marshlands, and mangrove woodlands. Fauna includes coyotes, peccaries, white-nosed coatis, Bairds tapirs, sea turtles, the three species of monkey are Geoffroys spider monkey, mantled howler and white-headed capuchin. Several cat species are present, jaguarundi, ocelot, cougar and jaguar. Around 250 bird species and 115 mammal species are found within the park
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Guanacaste National Park (Costa Rica)
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It was this high density of bio-diversity that encouraged the Costa Rican government to protect this area. The Tempisque River flows through the lowland areas. There are dry forests at lower elevations and cloud forests at higher elevations, there are several trails running through the park that offer up good hiking. The trail leading to the Orosi Volcano has pre-Columbian petroglyphs near the plain at El Pedregal, as a whole these formally became part of National System of Conservation Units in 1994 and then later in 1999 a World Heritage site. In 1995 the Junquillal Bay Wildlife Refuge was added to the group of sites, Guanacaste Conservation Area Area de Conservación Guanacaste World Heritage Site
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Barro Colorado Island
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Barro Colorado Island is located in the man-made Gatun Lake in the middle of the Panama Canal. The island was formed when the waters of the Chagres River were dammed to form the lake in 1913, when the waters rose, they covered a significant part of the existing tropical forest, but certain hilltops remained as islands in the middle of the lake. It has an area of 15.6 km2, the island was set aside as a nature reserve on April 17,1923 by the U. S. Government. The BCNM has an area of 54 km2 and it is among the most-studied areas of tropical forest in the world. The Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute has a permanent research center on the island, because the Islands diverse ecosystem has been very little altered by humans, Barro Colorado has been studied for over eighty years within a great variety of biological disciplines. Only the larger fauna disappeared from Barro Colorado after the lake was flooded in 1914, many scientific studies have been conducted to document the changes in the species composition of the island. Hundreds of scientists conduct research projects on Barro Colorado Island every year, in 1978, Thomas Croat published his Flora of Barro Colorado Island documenting the plant species on the island. In 1999, Egbert Leigh, who first visited the island in 1966, in 2002 The Tapirs Morning Bath by Elizabeth Royte was published, chronicling the lives and work of scientists working on the island. National Geographic produced a documentary featuring the Barro Colorado Island titled Worlds Last Great Places, in 1980, a 50-ha forest dynamics plot was established on BCI by researchers from STRI and Princeton University. The first census was conducted in 1982 and recorded every free-standing tree and shrub in the plot of more than 1-cm dbh, totalling approximately 240,000 stems of 303 different species. It has been recensused every 5 years since 1985, allowing scientists to study the dynamics of the forest, as well as extreme events. Another 50 ha plot was established in the Pasoh forest reserve, Malaysia in 1987. Visitors are allowed on Barro Colorado Island, access is, however, regulated by STRI. To visit BCI, you must make a reservation with the staff, tours generally include transportation to and from the island, a 2–3 hour guided hike, lunch, and a visit to the museum. Hikes through the offer up the opportunity to spot several creatures, including monkeys, anteaters, birds. Media related to Barro Colorado Island at Wikimedia Commons
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Panama City
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Panama City is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Panama. It has an population of 430,299, and its population totals 880,691 when rural areas are included. The city is located at the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal, the city is the political and administrative center of the country, as well as a hub for international banking and commerce. It is considered a world city, one of three Central American cities listed in this category. Panamas Tocumen International Airport, the largest and busiest airport in Central America, Panama was chosen as the 2003 American Capital of Culture jointly with Curitiba, Brazil. It is among the top five places for retirement in the world, the city of Panama was founded on August 15,1519, by Spanish conquistador Pedro Arias Dávila. The city was the point for expeditions that conquered the Inca Empire in Peru. On January 28,1671, the city was destroyed by a fire when privateer Henry Morgan sacked. The city was reestablished two years later on January 21,1673, in a peninsula located 8 km from the original settlement. The site of the devastated city is still in ruins and is now a popular tourist attraction known as Panama Viejo. The city was founded on August 15,1519, by Pedro Arias de Ávila, also known as Pedrarias Dávila. Within a few years of its founding, the city became a point for the exploration and conquest of Peru. In 1671 Henry Morgan with a band of 1400 men attacked and looted the city, the ruins of the old city still remain and are a popular tourist attraction known as Panamá la Vieja. It was rebuilt in 1673 in a new location approximately 5 miles southwest of the original city and this location is now known as the Casco Viejo of the city. One year before the start of the California Gold Rush, the Panama Railroad Company was formed and that traffic greatly increased the prosperity of the city during that period. The construction of the Panama Canal was of benefit to the infrastructure. Of particular note are the improvements in health and sanitation brought about by the American presence in the Canal Zone, dr. William Gorgas, the chief sanitary officer for the canal construction, had a particularly large impact. He hypothesized that diseases were spread by the abundance of native to the area, and ordered the fumigation of homes
