Macaca

Diversity

The genus Macaca is comprised of 24 species and are the most dispersed taxon of primates besides Homo Sapiens . Macaca species are Old World monkeys in the family Cercopithecinae . Macaques are predominately found in the tropical Oriental Region forests, but can also be found in the Paleartic Region. Macaques are medium-sized primates and can weigh between 3-18 kilograms. They are mostly arboreal, but some species have become semi-terrestrial. Macaques live in social groups comprised of adult males, females, and their offspring. Both sexes exhibit dominance hierarchies, while females also live in a kin-related social network. Male macaques usually migrate to different troops throughout their lifetime to mate. Many species of Macaca species coexist with humans and take advantage of the many resources provided by humans.

Geographic Range

The majority of Macaca species are found predominately in the Oriental region, but can cover a large latitudinal gradient. Macaca species are also found in the Paleartic Region, but were most likely introduced by humans there. The majority of macaques are associated with tropical forests and habitats in Asia and India, but some species can be found in North-Western Africa and Southern Europe. One species of Macaca is even found in the Japanese Alps. Macaques can also range from Morocco, Japan, Taiwan, Bali, and the Philippines.

• Biogeographic Regions
• palearctic palearctic
  • introduced introduced
• oriental oriental
  • native native

Habitat

Macaques are extremely adaptable to different environments and habitats. Macaca are most commonly found in tropical forests in the Oriental Region. However, some species are found in the Paleartic region in North-Western Africa, and Southern Europe. Some species of Macaca prefer lowland and dense forests and forests near rivers, while others prefer a less dense forest and a more mountainous environment. One species, the Japanese macaque, inhabits the Japanese Alps and prefers colder climates. Macaques can inhabit tropical rainforests, arid mountains, and temperate mountains all across their range. Macaca also frequently coexists with humans in urban environments. They can be found at many tourist attractions and even religious temples.

• Habitat Regions
• temperate temperate
• tropical tropical
• terrestrial terrestrial

• Terrestrial Biomes
• forest forest
• rainforest rainforest
• mountains mountains

• Other Habitat Features
• urban urban

Systematic and Taxonomic History

Macaques have a unique systematic and taxonomic history. They are classified in the family Cercopithecidae , along with the genus’s Papio , Cercocebus , Mandrillus and others. Classification within this genus has been complicated and ranged from the recognition of two different genera, to naming different subgenera, to the currently accepted placement, which places them into a single genus. They are the most diverse genus of the Old World Monkeys. The mitochondrial DNA suggests that the Macaques are a monophyletic group and that they originated in Africa and then spread to Asia. There were many synonyms for this group, including Cynopithecus , Inuus , Lyssodes , Magus , and many others.

Physical Description

Macaques are medium sized primates, with varying differences in body mass between species. Their body mass can range from 3 kilograms to 20 kilograms. Macaques fur are varying colors of brown and black. They have similarly sized forelimbs and hindlimbs, which makes it easier and more energy-efficient to move on the ground. Macaques tails lengths vary in sizes between species, with some being long, short, or completely absent. Macaques have long faces and snouts, with long third molars. Macaques are sexually dimorphic, but there is differences between species in penile structure and sexual swelling. In some species, female macaques produce show a reddening of their skin to indicate ovulation.

• Other Physical Features
• endothermic endothermic
• bilateral symmetry bilateral symmetry

• Sexual Dimorphism
• male larger

Reproduction

During the days leading up to ovulation in female macaques, they present themselves to the males to groom and stay close to them. Hormonal structure in female macaques significantly influences sexual interaction among different species, by the hormones changing the menstrual cycle in females when the probability of mating is high. Females usually avoid adult male macaques when not during reproduction time, due to resource availability. However, during a peak in the late follicular phase, the female macaques reach peak sexual motivation and sexual interaction between them are frequent. Once this phase ends, the females begin to avoid the males once again. Female macaques have control of the sexual interactions between them and males. Most females mate with the higher-ranking male members of their group. Mating behavior differs between species, but most female Macaque species rotate through multiple sexual partners a day during their late follicular phase.

• Mating System
• polygynandrous (promiscuous) polygynandrous (promiscuous)

Gestation lengths vary in different Macaca species, but the general gestation time is between 165-170 days. Most pregnancies result in one offspring per breeding season and cases of twinning is rare. Infants are delivered at night and labor can last 5-7 hours. Sexual maturity for female and male macaques vary. Female macaques sexual maturity is reached around 3 years of age, and sexual maturity for males is reached around the ages of 3 to 5. Weaning of the offspring varies, but usually occurs at around 7 months to a year. Some species of macaques are seasonal breeders, while others breed all year long. The menstrual cycle of female macaques is usually between 26-30 days long.

• Key Reproductive Features
• seasonal breeding seasonal breeding
• year-round breeding year-round breeding
• gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
• sexual sexual
• viviparous viviparous

Female macaques have a large and extended parental investment in their young. Through their mother, infants acquire motor skills, environmental cues, gaze direction, and vocalizations. Infants rely on their mother for grooming, protection, nutrition, transportation, and even regulation of body temperature when they are young. Many species of macaques present a large amount of paternal investment as well. However, there is differentiation and some species do not provide care, improve the young's future survival, improve dominance status, or reproductive success. Some species of male macaques care for unrelated young, others don't interact at all with infants, and some are even aggressive to infants. Clearly, parental investment varies significantly between species and sexes in macaques.

• Parental Investment
• precocial precocial
• male parental care male parental care
• female parental care female parental care
• pre-fertilization
  • protecting
    • female
• pre-hatching/birth
  • protecting
    • female
• pre-weaning/fledging
  • protecting
    • female
• extended period of juvenile learning
• maternal position in the dominance hierarchy affects status of young

Lifespan/Longevity

Lifespans range among different species of macaques, but their lifespan usually ranges from 25-40 years, with the mean age being around 30 years. Captive macaques have a mean lifespan of around 25 years.

Behavior

Macaques form large multi-gender groups and are very social and motile. Females stay in their natal group their entire life, while males emigrate once they have reached maturity. The hierarchy of macaques is a matriarchy, with maternal relatives maintaining the bonds, support, dominance, and hierarchy of the group. Macaque species differ in habitat, with some species preferring arboreal habitats, while others prefer to be terrestrial. Locomotion in macaques are quadrupedal walking and running, with little leaping and no suspensory behavior. During the day, groups usually split up into smaller parties to forage for food. Macaque home ranges differs between species, but are relatively large and wide, being multiple hectares. Female macaques tend to avoid males until reproduction, but will usually mate with high-ranking male members of their group. Hormones significantly impact female macaque sexual interactions.

• Key Behaviors
• arboreal arboreal
• scansorial
• terricolous
• diurnal diurnal
• motile motile
• sedentary sedentary
• social social
• dominance hierarchies dominance hierarchies

Communication and Perception

Macaques use facial expression, vocalizations, gestures, and body posture to communicate with each other. Facial expressions are most used when there is an audience and these types of communication are indication of arousal, aggression, defense, and more. Since macaque societies are usually a matriarchy, social rank is communicated through the highest ranking female and the unrelated adult males. Macaques perceive their environment with senses like sight, smell, touch, and taste. As they age, macaques acquire motor skills, environmental cues, gaze directions, and vocalizations from their mother. Dominance ranks result from fighting and is strongly affected by support from their kin.

• Communication Channels
• visual visual
• acoustic acoustic

• Perception Channels
• visual visual
• tactile tactile
• acoustic acoustic
• chemical chemical

Food Habits

Macaques range in their diets, but are predominately frugivores. However, depending on their habitat and ecological niche, some will eat leaves, flowers, seeds, bark, and buds. Some species will even eat invertebrates like insects and crustaceans, and small vertebrates. Macaques are very dexterous, with short fingers and opposable thumbs, which helps them in finding and feeding on their food.

• Primary Diet
• herbivore herbivore
  • frugivore frugivore

Predation

Macaques are mostly preyed upon by large mammals, such as Panthera pardus , Panthera tigris , Lyacon pictus , Hyaenidae , and Pythonidae . Predator avoidance by macaques can look like manipulation of group size and composition, as well as changing where they sleep, forage, and mate. They use vocalizations and flight behavior in response to predators and will usually live and sleep in tall trees or above water that predators cannot access. Some species of macaques will also frequently either hide or flee from prey. All individuals of all sexes and ages (except young infants) use call and vocalizations when there is a predatory around. Males will call more frequently than females, and calling is based on age-related experiences.

Ecosystem Roles

Since macaques are mostly frugivores, they play a huge role in seed dispersal and pollination in their ecosystems. Other species of macaques that feed on crustaceans, insects, and small mammals help keep population numbers in check. These roles all help their ecosystem thrive and maintain biodiversity.

• Ecosystem Impact
• disperses seeds
• pollinates

Economic Importance for Humans: Positive

Macaques are frequently used as research animals in scientific studies and they can serve as a model for human infectious diseases. Some macaque species also serve as cultural symbols to many different religions. Macaques bring in lots of tourists and ecotourism to various monuments, parks, and reserves in their native range.

• Positive Impacts
• ecotourism ecotourism
• research and education

Economic Importance for Humans: Negative

Many species of macaques will raid crops when living around humans, which impacts their overall harvest and economic gains. Macaques are also frequently known to search cars and houses for food. They can also become aggressive to humans through scratching, biting, mobbing, lunging, and chasing. Property damage by macaques is a common occurrence where their ranges and human ranges overlap. Macaques are also hosts to many zoonotic diseases, such as hepatitis, Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), tuberculosis, and influenza. These can be transmitted between Homo sapien and macaques through interactions like bites, and can infect both species.

• Negative Impacts
• injures humans
  • bites or stings
  • causes disease in humans causes disease in humans
  • carries human disease
• crop pest

Conservation Status

Macaque species range widely in their conservation status, from near threatened to critically endangered. For example, Macaca tonkeana is near threatened, while Macaca nigra is classified as critically endangered. Macaque habitats are threatened by anthropogenic disturbances like logging, agriculture, habitat fragmentation, and degradation. Education about the conservation of the various macaques species, as well as more enforced laws in their native range, have been proposed to help conserve the species.

Other Comments

Macaca fuscata , or Japanese Macaques, have a cultural significance in Japan. In Japan, this macaque has religious associations as one of the reincarnations of Buddha. It is seen as a sacred messenger between spirits and humans. There is not much fossil evidence that relates to the dispersal and evolution of Asian macaques.

Additional Links

Encyclopedia of Life

Contributors

Hope Johnson (author), Colorado State University.

References

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