Stump-tailed Macaque (Macaca arctoides)

🐒 Stump-tailed Macaque (Macaca arctoides) – In-Depth Overview

🧬 Taxonomy & Classification

• Kingdom: Animalia
• Phylum: Chordata
• Class: Mammalia
• Order: Primates
• Family: Cercopithecidae (Old World monkeys)
• Genus: Macaca
• Species: Macaca arctoides
• Common Names:
  • Stump-tailed macaque
  • Bear macaque (due to its shaggy appearance)
• Authority: I. Geoffroy, 1831

🧍‍♂️ Physical Characteristics

• Size:
  • Males: 51–64 cm; weight: 9–15 kg
  • Females: 48–58 cm; weight: 7–10 kg
• Tail: Very short (3–6 cm), hence the name “stump-tailed”
• Coloration:
  • Coarse, shaggy fur: dark brown to black.
  • Bare facial skin: pink to red, often darkens with age or social rank.
• Facial Features:
  • Bald face with prominent brow ridges.
  • Expression often appears “wrinkled” or aged.
• Infants: Born with a lighter, pinkish face and darker fur.

🌍 Distribution & Habitat

📍 Geographic Range

• Native to: South and Southeast Asia
  • Countries: India (northeast), Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, southern China, and parts of Malaysia.

🏞️ Habitat

• Preferred: Tropical and subtropical forests — evergreen, semi-evergreen, and moist deciduous forests.
• Altitude: Sea level up to 2,000+ meters.
• Habitat use: Semi-terrestrial — spends time both on the ground and in trees.

🐾 Behavior & Social Structure

👪 Social Organization

• Group size: Typically 15–60 individuals.
• Structure: Multi-male, multi-female; matrilineal hierarchy.
• Dominance: Strong female kin-based dominance hierarchy; males often transient.
• Social bonds: Grooming and close proximity are key social tools.

🧠 Intelligence & Communication

• Highly intelligent and capable of learning social rules.
• Vocalizations, facial expressions, body postures, and grooming used for communication.

💤 Activity Pattern

• Diurnal: Active during the day.
• Foraging: Ground foraging for fruits, seeds, roots, small animals.

🥦 Diet & Feeding Ecology

• Diet Type: Omnivorous
• Primary Diet:
  • Fruits, seeds, leaves, roots, tubers.
• Supplemental Diet:
  • Insects, small vertebrates, bird eggs, fungi.
• Adaptability:
  • Opportunistic feeders; can exploit crops or garbage near human settlements.

🐣 Reproduction & Life History

• Breeding: Year-round, with peaks depending on region.
• Gestation: ~170 days (about 5.5 months)
• Litter size: Typically one infant.
• Birth interval: ~2 years.
• Infant Care: Long dependency; carried by mother for several months.
• Sexual Maturity:
  • Females: ~4 years.
  • Males: ~5–7 years.

🔬 Unique Biological Traits

• Menstruation: One of the few non-human primates with overt menstrual bleeding.
• Visual System: Color vision (trichromatic); aids in fruit detection.
• Thermoregulation: Adapted to both warm lowland forests and cooler highland areas.

🧭 Ecological Role

• Seed Disperser: Plays a crucial role in dispersing seeds through frugivory.
• Trophic Level: Mid-level consumer.
• Prey: Occasionally targeted by large predators such as leopards and pythons.

🏥 Threats & Conservation

📉 Conservation Status

• IUCN Red List: Vulnerable (VU)
  • Populations are declining due to habitat destruction and hunting.

❗ Major Threats

• Habitat Loss: Logging, agriculture, and infrastructure development.
• Hunting & Poaching: For bushmeat, traditional medicine, or pet trade.
• Human-Wildlife Conflict: Crop raiding and proximity to settlements lead to persecution.
• Disease: Susceptible to zoonotic diseases due to genetic similarity with humans.

🛡️ Protection Measures

• Listed in CITES Appendix II.
• Protected in various national parks and reserves across its range.
• Conservation efforts include:
  • Habitat protection and restoration.
  • Anti-poaching initiatives.
  • Community education and conflict mitigation.

📚 Research & Captive Studies

• Widely studied in captivity for research on:
  • Social learning and behavior
  • Reproductive biology
  • Neurology and immunology (e.g., models for human diseases)
• Ethical concerns have led to stricter regulations in primate research.

🔎 Distinguishing From Similar Macaques

📖 References & Further Reading

• IUCN Red List: Macaca arctoides
• Fooden, J. (1971). Systematic Review of the Stump-Tailed Macaque.
• Mittermeier, R.A., et al. (2013). Handbook of the Mammals of the World, Volume 3: Primates.
• Rowe, N. (1996). The Pictorial Guide to the Living Primates.

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