Final Thoughts...

At this point after everything I’ve learned, I am extremely afraid for this species of monkeys. With deforestation, caused by colonization which will then lead to overpopulation, I feel as if this cycle isn’t broken the white bellied spider monkey will in fact go extinct. It would seem extremely convenient to capture about a dozen of these monkeys and hope that they mate and have multiple offspring and save their entire species population. But in a previous post it’s a known fact that these monkeys practically never give birth in captivity.(8) If this was not the case than, perhaps there would be hope.

Deforestation and new civilizations moving into the forest would also be difficult to regulate. As a newly informed student, the protection of these monkeys will go unnoticed to the birth of a new group of people. I feel as if it is human nature to want to survive, and if hunting these monkeys will help them survive, than by all means they are going to hunt this slowly dwindling population of white bellied spider monkeys. If they were to be hunted into extinction they would die off a lot quicker. If deforestation were to be the cause of their extinction it would take a longer process. They would have to travel further distances to find food, and eventually they would run out of food, or the old wouldn’t survive the journey and they would die off. I am not sure if awareness alone could possible save this species. We need to take an active role in stopping deforestation, and try to help the new civilizations find other means of food. I don’t know,

I just don’t know. There’s got to be a way to save these spiderlike mammals.

The white bellied spider monkey is a primate, obviously, but they do not travel on all four limbs like some of their relatives. (11) When it comes to their brain compared to other monkeys, their brains are a lot less complex. The do not have opposable thumbs and their nostrils are further apart than usual. (12) The jump tree branch to tree branch and use their tail as a fifth leg. Their tail is very muscular and can be anywhere from 75-92cm long. (12)

The spider monkey hangs by its tail, and because of their slender limbs that dangle along side of its body, they resemble a spider hanging from its web.

When they use their arms and feet the movement resembles that of locomotion because they grab hold of each branch, hand over hand. Although they spend most of their life in the trees, this doesn’t mean that they can’t move about on the ground. (11)

When it comes to life in general, they mostly depend on their binocular vision. (12) Having this kind of sight means that they are able to focus on one object using both eyes (13). A spider monkey can move up to twelve meters, which is about 40 Feet, all in one swift swing. (14)

What’s being done to save them?

White bellied spider monkeys are being hunted, which is driving them very close to extinction. Why would anyone hunt monkeys? Well why would anyone hunt or kill a cow? For food. It may seem weird but in Columbia monkeys are eaten. This same area in Colombia (La Macarena, Tinigua and Picachos) is isolated for the White bellied spider monkey, a park for their protection. But because there has been an increase in human colonization around these areas, the people need food, and therefore are hunting animals in the surrounding forests. Unfortunately, there has been a level of resistance which makes it harder for the parks to control this hunting issue. I guess you could say we're luckily to have a subpopulation of this species in Colombia, between the Rios Caguan and Yari. Thankfully, this area is isolated, but if development spreads and colonization continues this subpopulation will go endangered as well, and very fast. (9) It seems to me, based on the nature of the females, forced mating may be difficult. It’s said that the females choose their own partners and could possibly mate with more than one male. (8) If there is a large enough group in captivity, then I feel the population will be able to increase, thats what I think, the only problem is, is that it’s a known fact that these monkeys very rarely give birth in captivity.(8) So if you thought breeding them in captivity would solve the problem, it won’t. There is a list of protected areas for the white bellied spider monkey (2)

What else is affecting this monkey? Global warming of course. The temperature of their surroundings shouldn’t drop below 75°F, because they do not adapt well to Climate changes. I’m assuming that if the temperature surpassed the living conditions of the plants the entire forest is at risk of dying. If this is a possibility what else can be done? In my opinion awareness is one way to save this species. How are they helping the environment around them? One of the main reasons the rainforest is so full of life is because of this monkey. Their environment sees them as seed dispersers. After they eat the fruit, the seeds are not able to be digested, and as a result, comes out in their waste. The monkey's waste hits the forest floor, and the seeds are scattered, and can begin to grow. If these monkeys spend most of their time eating, fruits at that, the survival of the rainforest depend on this primate. (2)

The Specifics- The White Bellied Spider MOnkey

A group of birds is called, well, a flock of course. Unfortunately there aren’t any flocks of monkeys they are called troops, barrels, tribes or cartloads. Groups of spider monkeys usually consist of 20 to 30 members. They’re hardly ever seen together and nearly always to be found traveling, feeding and resting small in groups of varying size and composition, the only persistent association being that of a mother and her offspring members of the group will also travel on their own.(2)
Each female in the group has a “core area” which is the area she uses the most. There are subgroups with 1-4 monkeys. This species has never seen associating with other primates. If they happen to run into another type of primate this is considered rare and the meetings are brief. These rare gatherings are a result of simultaneously search for fruits ate the same time. (2) At the age of 4 or 5 spider monkeys reach their sexual maturity. (2) For a female it may be 1,461 days, and for males 1,826 days. They can life for up to 37 years. They can give birth to only one infant at a time with a gestation period of 226-232 days. The female has a minimum of 1,095 days between each birth. (1) There is theoretical inter birth interval of 17.5 months (in captivity), but in the wild about 28-30 months.

Why They’re Endangered

Deforestation is one reason why the White bellied spider monkey is endangered. This species spends most of its time in the middle and lower strata and the canopy. They find their food in this area, and are completely depended on the resources offered in this level of the forests. Their diet mostly consists of wide variety of fruits. 83% of their diet are fruits and are mostly found in the emergent trees and upper part of the forest canopy. They also eat young leaves and flowers (both especially at times of fruit shortage during the beginning of the dry season), and besides such as young seeds, floral buds, pseudo bulbs, aerial roots, bark, decaying wood, and honey, and very occasionally small insects such as termites and caterpillars. As the trees fall, so does the population of the white bellied spider monkeys. (2)
Another problem is an uncontrollable cause. Their reproduction rate is lower than the death rate. If they are being hunted and dying, they are not having enough time to reproduce to make up for the lost monkeys.

The white bellied spider monkey is a part of the spider monkey family. Meaning they have similar traits. They have long and slender limbs connected to mobile shoulder joints. The mobile shoulder joints is the reason they can swing from branch to branch hand-over-hand. Their thumbs are either absent small stump, which makes their hands hook-like hand that allows them to swing quickly.




Facts: http://www.arkive.org/white-bellied-spider-monkey/ateles-belzebuth/description.html
Photograph: http://www.arkive.org/white-bellied-spider-monkey/ateles-belzebuth/image-G10267.html

Unlike the polar bear and the manatee, the white bellied spider monkey goes unnoticed when it comes to recognizing endangered species; unfortunately this primate is listed as vulnerable. An animal listed under vulnerable means that that species is at a high risk for extinction. These spider monkeys have become at risk due to habitat destruction and the division of their homes as a result of logging on top of that they are being hunted for food.
Here is a basic description of these creatures.
Ø Head and Body length(together) can measure between 416-582 mm
Ø Their tail lengths can be measured anywhere between 680 and 899 mm
Ø Males can weigh between 7,264-9,800 g
Ø A females weight ranges between 7,491-10,400 g
Ø Can be found in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, or Venezuela
Ø Kingdom- Animalia
Ø Phylum – Chordata
Ø Class- Mammalia
Ø Order- Primates
Ø Family- Atelidae
Ø Genus Ateles
Ø Scientific Name- Ateles belzebuth
Facts: http://www.arkive.org/white-bellied-spider-monkey/ateles-belzebuth/info.html
Photographs: http://www.arkive.org/white-bellied-spider-monkey/ateles-belzebuth/image-G11310.html