Mantled guereza facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Mantled guereza
Male at the Henry Doorly Zoo
Female with infant at Münster Zoo
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Genus:	Colobus
Species:	guereza
Mantled guereza range

The mantled guereza (Colobus guereza) is a type of monkey found in Africa. It is also known as the eastern black-and-white colobus. These monkeys live in many parts of west central and east Africa. You can find them in countries like Cameroon, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Uganda.

This monkey has a very special look. It has long, white hair that runs along the sides of its black body. This white hair looks like a cape or "mantle." Its face is framed with white hair, and it has a big white fluffy tail.

Mantled guerezas are active during the day (this is called diurnal). They mostly live in trees (this is called arboreal). They can live in different types of forests, even those that have been disturbed by humans. They like forests near rivers or lakes.

Even though people once thought they only ate leaves, they also eat seeds, fruits, and insects. They have a special stomach that helps them digest tough plant material. They are hunted by large birds and animals like common chimpanzees and leopards.

These monkeys live in groups of three to fifteen. A group usually has one main male, several females, and their young. Baby guerezas are born with pink skin and white fur. Their fur changes to black and white as they get older.

Mantled guerezas are famous for their loud "roars" at dawn. These roars help them talk to other groups from far away. It also helps them protect their territory. They use other sounds and body language to communicate too.

The mantled guereza is listed as "Least Concern" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). This means they are not in great danger of disappearing. However, one type of guereza in Kenya is listed as Endangered. Hunting for meat and their skins is a threat to them.

What's in a Name?

The mantled guereza has many names. People call it the guereza, the eastern black-and-white colobus, or the Abyssinian black-and-white colobus. The word "mantled" describes the long, white, cape-like hair on its body. "Guereza" is the local name for this monkey in Ethiopia.

Its scientific name, Colobus, comes from a Greek word meaning "mutilated." This refers to its very small, almost missing, thumb.

Monkey Family Tree

The mantled guereza was first described by Eduard Rüppell. He was a German scientist who explored Ethiopia in the 1830s. He wrote about this monkey in 1835. The first mantled guerezas came to Europe in 1890. They were seen at the Berlin Zoological Garden.

Distribution map of subspecies of Mantled guereza

The mantled guereza belongs to a group of monkeys called Colobinae. These are also known as leaf-eating monkeys. This group includes monkeys from Asia and Africa. African colobus monkeys are divided into three types:

• The black-and-white colobus monkeys (like the mantled guereza)
• The red colobus monkeys
• The olive colobus monkeys

There are three main kinds of black-and-white colobus monkeys. These are the mantled guereza, the king colobus, and the Angola colobus. Scientists recognize seven different types, or subspecies, of mantled guereza. They look a bit different depending on where they live.

Here are some of the subspecies and where they are found:

• Western guereza (Colobus guereza occidentalis): Found in places like Nigeria, Cameroon, and Uganda.
• Omo River guereza (C. g. guereza): Lives in the highlands of Ethiopia.
• Djaffa Mountains guereza (C. g. gallarum): Found in the Ethiopian Highlands east of the Rift Valley.
• Dodinga Hills guereza (C. g. dodingae): Found in the Didinga Hills in South Sudan.
• Mau Forest guereza (C. g. matschiei): Lives in western Kenya, Uganda, and northern Tanzania.
• Mt Uaraguess guereza (C. g. percivali): Found in the Matthews Range in Kenya.
• Eastern black-and-white colobus (C. g. kikuyuensis): Lives in Kenya, near Mount Kenya.
• Kilimanjaro guereza (C. g. caudatus): Found around Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and Kenya.

The different types of guerezas show gradual changes in their looks across their range.

• 

  C. g. occidentalis
  At the Semliki Wildlife Reserve in Uganda

• 

  C. g. occidentalis with juvenile
  At the Semliki Wildlife Reserve in Uganda

• 

  C. g. matschiei with juvenile
  At the Lake Naivasha in Kenya

• 

  C. g. matschiei
  At the Lake Naivasha in Kenya

• 

  male C. g. guereza
  At the Amora Gedel Park in Awassa, Ethiopia

• 

  male C. g. guereza
  At the Amora Gedel Park in Awassa, Ethiopia

• 

  juvenile female C. g. guereza
  At the Amora Gedel Park in Awassa, Ethiopia

Physical Appearance

A skull at the Museum Wiesbaden in Wiesbaden, Germany

The mantled guereza has very striking fur. Most of its body is black. It has long, white, silky hair along its sides and tail. This white hair forms a "mantle" or cape. The white bands start at the shoulders and go down the back.

Its tail is long and ends in a white tuft. The size of this white tuft can be different for different subspecies. For example, the tail tuft of one type might cover half the tail, while another type's tuft covers 80% of the tail. The mantle itself can be white, cream, or yellow. White hair frames its face, and it has bushy cheek hairs. There is also a white stripe on its thigh.

Baby guerezas are born with pink skin and white hair. As they grow, their skin and hair get darker. By three to four months old, they look like adult monkeys. Males usually get their adult colors faster than females.

Males typically weigh between 9.3 and 13.5 kilograms (20.5 to 29.8 pounds). Females are a bit smaller, weighing between 7.8 and 9.2 kilograms (17.2 to 20.3 pounds). Their body length (not including the tail) is about 61.5 cm (24.2 inches) for males and 57.6 cm (22.7 inches) for females. Like other colobus monkeys, they have a very small, almost unused, thumb.

Where They Live

Mantled guerezas are arboreal and prefer secondary forests.

Mantled guerezas live across Equatorial Africa. Their home range stretches from Nigeria in the west to Ethiopia and Tanzania in the east. They live in both forests that lose their leaves (deciduous) and those that stay green all year (evergreen).

They are often found in forests and woodlands, including high mountain forests. They especially like forests near rivers and lakes. They can live at very high elevations, up to 3,300 meters (10,800 feet).

These monkeys prefer "secondary forests." These are forests that have grown back after being cut down or disturbed. They like these forests because they often have more food trees. The plants in these forests might also have weaker natural defenses, making them easier to eat. Sometimes, guerezas are even found in swamps or human-made areas like eucalyptus tree farms.

Daily Life and Diet

Mantled guerezas spend most of their time in trees. This is called being "arboreal." However, they do come down to the ground sometimes to find food or travel. They are active during the day (diurnal) and rest for about half the day. They leave their sleeping trees after sunrise and return at sunset. During the day, they have long rest periods between moving and eating. They also spend time grooming, playing, and watching for danger.

The diet of the mantled guereza is predominantly leaves, often of only a few tree species.

Even though they are known as leaf-eaters, mantled guerezas eat a variety of foods. Their diet mainly includes leaves and fruit. But they also eat bark, seeds, flowers, and even insects. What they eat depends on the area and the time of year. They choose foods based on how much protein, tannins, and sodium they contain. They might even travel far to find plants with better nutrition.

Leaves usually make up more than half of their diet. When they eat leaves, they prefer young ones. When they eat fruits, they often prefer them unripe. This might help them avoid competing with other animals that eat ripe fruits. They eat from many plant types, but only a few kinds make up most of their diet in one place.

Like all colobus monkeys, mantled guerezas have a special stomach. It has multiple chambers and contains bacteria that help them digest leaves and other tough plant fibers. They prefer foods with lots of fiber that their special stomach can easily break down.

Their main predator is the crowned hawk-eagle. Other birds of prey, like Verreaux's eagle, also hunt them. Common chimpanzees are known to hunt guerezas. Leopards are also possible predators.

Social Life

Social grooming or allogrooming mainly occurs between females and is an important social interaction in mantled guereza groups.

Mantled guerezas live in stable social groups. These groups usually have three to fifteen members. Most groups have one male, several females, and their young. Some groups might have more than one male. In these multi-male groups, one male is usually dominant.

Females usually stay in the group they were born into. They help keep the group together. Males, however, usually leave their birth group when they become older. They might live alone or with other males in "bachelor groups." They can join a social group by staying on its edge or by taking over from another male.

Female guerezas in a group often have an equal social style. They have relaxed and friendly relationships. Serious fights within the group are rare. Grooming each other is very important for mantled guerezas. Females groom each other the most. Adult males rarely groom others in the group.

While not strictly territorial, mantled guereza groups can be aggressive towards each other. Males often take part in these aggressive meetings between groups. Females might join in too. These encounters usually involve chasing, showing off, and loud calls, rather than physical fighting.

Reproduction and Parenting

Infants are born with white fur and are always carried during the first months of their life.

Mantled guerezas have a mating system where one male mates with several females. Both males and females can start the mating process. They might walk near each other and make soft clicking sounds. During mating, the male holds onto the female's ankles and body. Most mating happens within the same group, but sometimes monkeys mate with those from other groups. In groups with more than one male, several males might mate with the females.

Pregnancy lasts about 158 days. Females usually have a baby every 16 to 22 months. Newborn guerezas are born with white fur and pink skin. They depend on their mother for support and cling to her. As they get older, babies can move on their own but still return to their mothers.

Baby monkeys get a lot of attention from the whole group. Other females in the group might hold a baby, but the babies are most comfortable with their own mothers. Males usually don't pay much attention to babies until they are about four to five weeks old. Babies can start eating solid food around eight to nine weeks old. By about fifty weeks, they are fully weaned and no longer need to cling to their mothers.

Communication

The most famous sound made by the mantled guereza is its "roar." Males mainly make this sound at night or dawn. A roar can be heard up to a mile away. If there are several males in a group, usually the dominant male roars. Roars are used for long-distance communication. They help groups keep their distance from each other without having to meet and fight. When one male starts roaring, nearby males will often start roaring too.

The roars of different males can sound a bit different. This might signal how strong their group is or how good they are at fighting. A male can use his roar to show off his body size, even making it sound bigger than it is.

Mantled guerezas make other sounds too. Males might snort as an alarm call. "Purrs" are made before the group moves. Females and babies might make "caw" sounds when they are a little worried. If they are in serious danger, like if a baby is threatened, females and young monkeys will squeak or scream. A "tongue-clicking" sound is made during mild aggression.

Besides sounds, mantled guerezas communicate using body postures, movements, how they show their fringe fur, facial expressions, and touches.

Conservation Status

The mantled guereza is hunted for its skin and meat.

The mantled guereza is less threatened than many other colobus monkeys. This is because it can live in different types of forests and can move on the ground. The IUCN lists it as "Least Concern." This means that even though it might be threatened in some small areas, its overall population is not decreasing fast enough to be in a higher danger category.

However, some types of mantled guereza are more at risk. The Mt Uaraguess guereza (C. g. percivali) is listed as Endangered. This is because it lives in a small area and is at risk from hunting. Other types, like the Dodinga Hills guereza (C. g. dodingae), are listed as "Data Deficient." This means there isn't enough information to know how well they are doing. The Dodinga Hills guereza has not been seen since the 1960s.

Unlike most other monkeys, the mantled guereza can survive well in forests that have been changed by humans. They can even do better in forests that have been logged than in untouched forests. This is because logging might increase the number of trees they like to eat. However, if a forest is completely cleared, their numbers drop a lot. For example, in Uganda, complete forest clearing caused their population to drop by 50% in eight years.

Mantled guerezas are also hunted for their meat and their skins. Their meat is sold as "bushmeat" for a few dollars. Their skins have been sold for fashion or to tourists.

See also

In Spanish: Guereza abisinio para niños