Wednesday 14 April 2010.
The Magdalena Spider Monkey (Ateles hybridus) is a primate almost endemic to Colombia and listed as one of the 25 most endangered primate species on the planet, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature IUCN. Historically distributed across the Magdalena River of north-eastern Colombia and western Venezuela.
The use of camera traps has become an important strategy by ProAves to collect biological and ecological information from different species of endangered fauna found in the El Paujil Bird Reserve. This tool has yielded excellent images never before recorded in the natural habitat of two species of primates, the Red Howler Monkey (Alouatta seniculus) and Magdalena Spider Monkey (Ateles hybridus), the latter one of the largest within the neotropical primates in America and that is protected in perpetuity in the forests of the Reserve.
With the installation of camera traps in strategic sites, we were able to obtain images of a troop of Spider Monkeys and Howler Monkeys who came to the only salt for miles around, places that offer mineral and salt dissolved in a mixture of sandy-clay soil and we documented unique moments in wildlife species. Such places become strategic points to assess possible agonistic encounters inter and intra species specific and also facilitate the assessment of population structure and other aspects of their biology that contribute to future conservation plans for the groups that approach the area where the salt is to be found.
 |
 |
|
Individual Ateles Hybridus male. |
 |
|
Youth Individual Ateles Hybridus. |
 |
|
Youth Individual Ateles Hybridus. |
 |
|
Troop of howler monkeys Alouatta seniculus. |
 |
|
3 individuals Alouatta seniculus. |
Spider Monkey Video taken in the El Paujil Bird Reserve
{youtube}FSerdYBY844|425|344|1{/youtube}