| Scientific Name: |
Colobus guereza |
| Range: |
Central and Eastern Africa |
| Habitat: |
Rainforests |
| Natural Diet: |
Fruit, leaves, flowers, and twigs |
| Zoo Diet: |
Commercial primate biscuit, vegetables, and bananas |
Physical
Characteristics: |
Colobus monkeys are black with white fur bordering their face and
trailing down their back and rump. Their tails have a bushy white tip.
They are 20-22 inches in length, and their tails are an additional 21-33
inches long. They weigh 18-30 pounds. |
| Behavior: |
Colobus monkeys have unusually long fingers which help them swing
through the trees, looking for food. Each male leads a small troop of
4-5 females and young. He defends his territory with roars and
tremendous leaps. |
| Reproduction: |
The gestation period is about six months. Females give birth to an
average of one young every 20 months. |
| Notes: |
Colobus monkeys have specialized stomachs that help them digest
plant cellulose. To get rid of the methane and carbon dioxide produced
as a byproduct of digestion, they often belch in each other’s face as a
friendly social gesture. Their digestive systems enable them to get
more nutrition from plants than other monkeys. |
