Lion-Tailed Macaque

BIOEXPLORER

Primate Profile

Lion-tailed Macaque

Macaca Macaca silenus

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Mammalia

Order

Primates

Family

Cercopithecidae

Genus

Macaca

Species

silenus

Authority

(Linnaeus, 1758)

Photo

EN

IUCN STATUSEndangered

• Common NamesLion-tailed Macaque, Wanderoo
• Taxonomy Classification Year1758
• Monkey Size42 to 61 cm (17 to 24 in)
• Skin Color(s)Black
• HabitatRainforest, mountains
• DietOmnivorous
• Native CountriesIndia

Lion-tailed Macaque Distribution

Countries

Toggle legend

India ()

Lion-Tailed Macaque Characteristics

The lion-tailed macaque^[1] (Macaca silenus), also known as the wanderoo, is an Old World monkey native to the Western Ghats of South India.

• The body is covered with black fur. The tail is long, thin, and bare, with a tuft of puffy black hairs at the tip.
• Both males and females have a lion-like mane of grayish fur that encircles the face. The face itself is bald and black.
• Macaca silenus has two incisors, one canine, three premolars, and two molars in each mouth quadrant.
• Lion-tailed macaques have cheek pouches that open next to the lower teeth and extend down the sides of the neck.
• The young are born with a soft, black coat replaced by an adult coat after two months.

Lion-Tailed Macaque Facts

• Lion-tailed macaques are diurnal and arboreal.
• It is a good climber, spending most of its life in the upper canopy of tropical evergreen forests.
• Unlike other macaques, it generally avoids people when possible.
• In group behavior, the lion-tailed macaque is similar to other macaques, living in hierarchical groups of typically 10 to 20 members, usually made up of a few males and many females.
• It is a territorial animal that will first defend its territory against noisy invading troops.