Newly Discovered South American Monkey - Bushy Bearded Titi Monkey

Cool Facts About the Bushy-Bearded Titi Monkey

As the name suggests the Bushy-Bearded Titi Monkey is actually a type of Titi Monkey that is known to have a red, bushy beard
It is believed that these monkey’s were initially observed during the 1960’s, however, due to political reasons, they weren’t officially described until 2008. All of these discoveries were made in the Columbian Amazon forest
The population of the Bushy-Bearded Titi Monkey is incredibly low, with approximately 250 individuals remaining in the wild. As you might expect they are listed as critically endangered by the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature)

Is It Movember Already?

One of the first things you will notice about the Bushy-Bearded Titi Monkey is of course their awesome reddish beard. Besides their facial hair, these monkey’s are also have a long greyish tail, which is not prehensile so they can’t use it as an extra hand. Although these tails can’t grip anything they are typically longer than the rest of the monkey’s body and are most likely very important for balancing the monkey as they play in the rainforest.

Forming a Strong Bond

In my opinion the most interesting feature about this newly discovered primate is the commitment they make to their loving mate. Unlike most other monkey species the Bushy-Bearded Titi Monkey will mate for life. That’s right, once they choose a mate, they form a very strong relationship that lasts until death do them part. Not only do these primates believe in true love but as you might expect they also have incredibly strong family values. What does this mean? Well, it means that they form large family groups in which the children usually stay with them for about 2-3 years before going off on their own to start their family. The female readers will love this next part. It is typically the male monkey that takes care of the children, however, the females are responsible for feeding, which means the dad has to groom, play and help the kids with their homework.

We are only just getting started with our research on this monkey. Let’s hope that this critically endangered species will continue to survive despite the increase in habitat destruction. Unfortunately, this won’t likely be the case unless we change our ways and stop cutting down the rainforest.