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Life in the Forest

Life in the River

The Insect World

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Monkeys

There is a variety of monkeys which live in Amaz⌠nia. These range from the tiny Tamarin to the large Howler monkey. However, Amazon monkeys are generally much smaller than their African cousins.

Many Amazon monkeys have long tails, which they use to grip branches – helping them to move about in the tree-tops. The tail is used almost like an additional arm. Perhaps the best example of this is the spider monkey. Spider monkeys got their name because they have very long limbs, and a long tail, which makes them look a little like a spider.

Monkeys are mostly vegetarian. They live on fruit, leaves, and nuts – though they also eat insects and and any eggs that they might find. Monkeys are preyed upon by many other rainforest animals such as margay, boa constrictors, and even large birds. They have also been hunted by man. Monkey was a common food for many Indian tribes, and Europeans also hunted them for the pet trade or for various monkey products – for example, the tail of the saki monkey was once commonly used as a duster. In modern times, some species of monkeys have been extensively hunted for use in testing laboratories.

Most monkeys are hard to find because they live in the tree-tops and are difficult to see from the ground. However, there is one species of monkey that is very easy to find – the red howler monkey. Howler monkeys are the largest monkeys in Amaz⌠nia, and make loud whooping noises. They have a special bone in their throat which amplifies their calls, and they can be heard from miles away. Some early explorers found these calls to be blood-curling, and claimed that being forced to listen to them for too long was enough to drive a person mad.

Some monkeys hardly look like monkeys at all. Tamarins are a type of monkey which look like a cross between a cat and an opossum. They are very small. Once species of tamarin, the Emperor Tamarin, has long white whiskers and got its name when a someone stuffing the animal decided to roll its whisker into a moustache like that of the Prussian Emperor.