Monkeys with white faces stand out from other primates due to their distinctive facial coloration. These primates inhabit forests across Central and South America and display an array of behaviors and adaptations. In this article, we’ll explore 11 of the most fascinating monkeys with white faces.
1. Central American White-faced Capuchin
The Central American White-faced Capuchin is a charismatic monkey named for its pink face surrounded by white hairs. This agile primate uses its prehensile tail to hang from branches while foraging. Capuchins live in social troops and exhibit complex behaviors like using tools and rubbing plants over themselves, possibly for medicinal purposes.
2. White-faced Saki
Male White-faced Sakis are aptly named for their stark white faces contrasting with black fur. Unlike other monkeys, Sakis form monogamous pairs that last for life. Their strong teeth allow them to crack open hard nuts and seeds. White-faced Sakis are elusive primates that spend most of their time high in the canopy.
3. Colombian White-faced Capuchin
Closely related to the Central American Capuchin, this monkey has a pinkish-white face surrounded by black fur Colombian Capuchins are highly intelligent and use tools in the wild, such as sticks to access food and shells to scoop water Troops exhibit complex social behaviors and have been observed rubbing plants over themselves, possibly for medicinal purposes.
4. Geoffroy’s Tufted-ear Marmoset
This petite monkey has a white face with dark fur and tufted ears, as its name suggests. Marmosets live in small family groups with a dominant breeding pair. They eat fruit, insects and tree sap, but their lifespan in the wild is short due to high predation.
5. Marañón White-fronted Capuchin
Found in Peru’s Amazon Basin, the Marañón Capuchin has a bald pink face encircled by grayish-white hairs. It spends most of its time in trees but often comes down to the ground to forage. The Marañón Capuchin is critically endangered, with habitat loss being the main threat to its survival.
6. Santa Marta White-fronted Capuchin
Endemic to Colombia’s Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, this endangered capuchin has a bald pink face and brown body. It lives in small social groups in high elevation forests. Due to its limited range, habitat destruction poses a major risk to this species.
7. Ecuadorian White-fronted Capuchin
Inhabiting Ecuador’s tropical dry forests, the Ecuadorian Capuchin has a characteristic white head and facial markings. It lives in groups up to 20 individuals. This threatened species suffers from habitat fragmentation, but its intelligence allows it to adapt better than other monkeys.
8. Spix’s White-fronted Capuchin
Spix’s Capuchin resides in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest and has a distinctly pinkish-white face. It rarely comes down from the trees and mainly eats fruit, supplementing its diet with insects and small vertebrates Living in large groups provides protection against the many predators of the Amazon canopy
9. White-fronted Capuchin
Widespread in South America, the White-fronted Capuchin has coloration similar to other capuchins – a hairless white face and frontal body. White-fronted Capuchins are highly social and forage both in trees and on the ground. With their diverse diet and ability to adapt, White-fronted Capuchins are not currently threatened.
10. Trinidad White-fronted Capuchin
This endangered capuchin is endemic to Trinidad’s remaining forests. In contrast to other white-faced monkeys, the Trinidad Capuchin has an entirely white body and face. It lives in female-dominated groups in the forest canopy and cannot survive independently. Habitat destruction currently puts this species at risk.
11. Rio Cesar White-fronted Capuchin
Last on our list is the Rio Cesar Capuchin, only found in Colombia’s Rio Cesar Valley. It has white facial hair and brow as well as a white neck and upper body. This little-studied capuchin spends most of its time in trees and makes loud warning calls to deter predators. Continued research is needed to determine its conservation status.
The many monkeys with white faces across Central and South America showcase the impressive diversity of New World primates. Sadly, habitat destruction threatens many of these fascinating species. Protecting forests where these monkeys live ensures their continued survival. By highlighting these primates, we can appreciate their uniqueness and help protect their future.
More about White Faced Monkey
Capuchin monkeys, also called white-faced monkeys, occupy the wet lowland forests on Caribbean coast of Costa Rica and Panama and deciduous dry forest on the Pacific coast.
Capuchins live from northern Colombia to Belize; in Costa Rica and Panama they can live in habitats up to 1,500 m in elevation; they may live as high as 2,000 m in Colombia.
Biology and Natural History
These monkeys are distinct in appearance from other Central American primates: they have a black body with a white upper chest and shoulders, and a white face with a black cap on top of their head. They are diurnal and arboreal, and can frequently be seen using their prehensile tails and strong limbs to swing between trees. Group size averages at 15, with one adult male leading the troop. Females have one baby every 1 to 2 years, who clings to the mother for the first 5 or 6 months of life.
Capuchins have the most versatile diet of New World monkeys. Aside from resting, almost all of their time is spent traveling and foraging, beginning at daybreak and moving until they stop for the night. They forage from the forest floor up to the canopy, and the troop can spread far out laterally as well as they forage. When it is available, they will travel to a spring or other sources to drink water. Because they keep a diverse diet, their actions strongly affect the vegetative populations in their habitats. They may do this by dispersing seeds of some species, pruning others, which stimulates branching, and eating insects that would otherwise damage the plants. In other cases, their determined actions have negative effects. For example, while eating the ant colonies that live inside acacia trees, capuchins can destroy the plants to get to the ants.
The main predators of capuchins may be large raptors, boa constrictors, and cats.
Capuchins are largely insectivorous, but have a diet broad beyond insects: fruits, flowers, invertebrates, as well as the less frequent bird eggs, bird hatchlings, nestling squirrels, and small lizards. They will eat plant material some times as well. The insects they consume include butterfly larvae, ants, cicadas, grasshoppers, and others. These omnivores are discriminating, though. They like to eat ripe fruit, so they first smell, bite, or squeeze it before ingesting it to make sure it is suitable. With soft fruit they often chew it, swallow the juice and flesh, and spit out the undesireable parts; of other fruits they only eat the seeds; and really hard fruits they may pound or mash to soften them.
Adults are generally 2.5 to 3.5 kg; males are a little larger than females.
Order: Primates Family: Cebidae
Eisenberg, John. Mammals of the Neotropics, Vol. 1. The University of Chicago Press: Chicago, 1989.
Freese, C. H. in Janzen, Daniel H. Costa Rican Natural History. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1983.
Wilson, D. E. in Janzen, Daniel H. Costa Rican Natural History. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1983.
-Amy Strieter, Wildlife Writer
White-faced Monkeys | Costa Rica & Panama | Lindblad Expeditions-National Geographic
FAQ
What are the monkeys with white faces called?
Capuchin monkeys, also called white-faced monkeys, occupy the wet lowland forests on Caribbean coast of Costa Rica and Panama and deciduous dry forest on the Pacific coast.
What are white-faced monkeys called?
The white-faced capuchin, also known as the white-throated capuchin, is a medium-sized monkey native to South America, characterized by its distinct white fur …
Are white-faced monkeys friendly?
Are white-faced capuchin monkeys dangerous? Generally, these monkeys are not dangerous to humans. However, if they feel threatened or cornered, they might react defensively. It’s always best to maintain a safe distance and avoid any sudden movements.
Are capuchin monkeys legal in the US?
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State and local laws:Always research your specific state and local regulations before considering owning a capuchin monkey.
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Permits and licenses:Many states require permits or licenses for owning certain exotic animals, including primates.
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Restrictions:Some states may have restrictions on what types of exotic animals are allowed as pets, or may prohibit them altogether.
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Potential dangers:Capuchin monkeys can be aggressive and potentially dangerous if not properly socialized and trained.
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High cost and effort:Owning a capuchin monkey requires significant investment in care, training, and enrichment, as well as the potential for veterinary costs.
Do monkeys have white faces?
Some of the most atypical-looking monkeys have white faces. Spread across various species, these types of monkeys are numerous in Central and South America. Often inhabiting forests and areas of the forests close to water, these monkeys are mostly small and bright-faced both in males and females.
Can one get monkey pox only on their face?
Yes, it is possible to get monkeypox only on the face. The rash associated with monkeypox can appear anywhere on the body, but it is most commonly found on the face, arms, and legs. The rash usually starts as flat, red spots that then turn into raised bumps. The bumps can be filled with fluid and eventually crust over and fall off.
Where are white-faced monkeys found?
Found in wet and dry forests and mangroves in and along the coasts of Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Honduras, Nicaragua, Ecuador, even as far as Argentina. Guests aboard National Geographic Quest learn about white-faced monkeys on the Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica. Video by David Pickar.
Are all monkeys white?
No, not all monkeys are white. While almost all species can have white individuals due to albinism, most white monkeys are known on a per-species basis. The white nuance may be specific to both males and females of a species or it may change over time.
What is a white-faced capuchin monkey?
Colombian White-faced Capuchin With a range expanding from Colombia to Panama, these white-faced monkeys (Cebus capucinus) have a common pink and white face similar to The Central American White-Faced Capuchin. The bright face of the species and the bright upper body also inspire their name the White-Throated Capuchins.
What causes a monkey to be white?
Some of the rarest types of monkeys in the world are white. Their white hairs can cover the entire body or they may only cover a significant part of the body. Almost all species can be white in rare cases of albinism. However, most white monkeys are known on a per-species basis.