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Capuchin Monkey

EMBER came to us in October 2017 at 14 years of age along with another capuchin, Haley, as an owner surrender from a private family that moved from Arizona where it is legal to own a pet monkey to California where it is not. When she came to Animal Tracks, she had no idea how to act or communicate like a monkey and would self-sooth by rocking because of her angst. It took a long time for her to learn how to be a monkey, but now she lives with Tara, an older monkey that has lymphoma – and we have found that Ember loves to groom her and be motherly towards her, which has brought her out of her shell – she has come a long way from being the nervous, anxiety ridden monkey that arrived here five years ago. She is still shy, but there are a couple of people that she has become close with and will quietly sit and let them groom her while she does the same to them, and to our delight she is letting more and more people into her world. She has won the hearts of many of our volunteers because they have seen the positively huge leaps and bounds, she has made with her mental health… she is quite inspiring!!!

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ORDER: PRIMATES
FAMILY: CEBIDAE
GENUS: SAPAJUS
SPECIES: APELLA  

Capuchins are diurnal or day dwelling. They are arboreal, live in the trees. They move quadrupedally, by leaping and climbing. They are highly sociable and live in groups of around 8 to 15 individuals. Grooming is a way of taking care of the ones you love, but also climbing the social ladder. They live in a patriarchal society where the male is boss. They are omnivores and eat fruit, leaves, insects, rodents, and reptiles. They are polygamists. The female is pregnant for 150-160 days and normally has one baby at a time. The babies stop nursing at 9 months. Males mature at the age of 7 years, females, much younger, they can have their first child at the age of 4. Capuchins have a superpower, they are seed dispersers, which means they eat the seeds as part of the fruit they consume, and once they defecate, those seeds are ready to become plants and trees.

 

Threats

Habitat destruction. Jaguars, birds of prey and bushmeat, pet trade and entertainment industry.

 

Conservation Status

CE - Critically Endangered

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