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Class:
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Mammalia
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Order:
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Primates
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Family:
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Atelidae
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Genus:
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Ateles
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Species:
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geoffroyi
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Life span:
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Roughly 27 in the wild
30 to 40 years under human care |
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Gestation:
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226 – 232 days
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Number of young at birth:
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1
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Age of maturity:
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Female: 4 years
Male: 5 years |
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Size:
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12 – 25 in. long
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Weight:
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Females: 12 – 16 lbs.
Males: 15 – 18 lbs. |
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Size at birth:
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15 oz.
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Description:
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Colors from tawny and reddish to almost black. Hands and feet are black. Tail and arms are extremely long compared to body.
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Fun Facts:
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Primarily herbivores – 90 percent of the diet is fruit and nuts
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Range: Mexico to Panama with some populations reported in Colombia
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Habitat: Prefer the middle and upper canopy of the forests
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Tail is used for swinging and to pick up objects
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Usually feed in the morning
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Have no thumbs
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Can travel through trees as fast as a man can run on ground – using a method of locomotion called brachiation: arm over arm swinging through the branches
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Females actively choose their own mates, sometimes spending the whole mating season with one male.
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Can give birth at any time of the year
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Mother will carry baby close to her chest until it is old enough to travel on her back
