The golden angwantibo (''Arctocebus aureus'') is a

strepsirrhine Strepsirrhini or Strepsirhini (; ) is a suborder of primates that includes the lemuriform primates, which consist of the lemurs of Madagascar, galagos ("bushbabies") and pottos from Africa, and the lorises from India and southeast Asia. Collec ...

primate Primates are a diverse order of mammals. They are divided into the strepsirrhines, which include the lemurs, galagos, and lorisids, and the haplorhines, which include the tarsiers and the simians (monkeys and apes, the latter including huma ...

of the family

Lorisidae Lorisidae (or sometimes Loridae) is a family of strepsirrhine primates. The lorisids are all slim arboreal animals and comprise the lorises, pottos and angwantibos. Lorisids live in tropical, central Africa as well as in south and southeast Asia. ...

. It shares the genus ''

Arctocebus Angwantibos are two species of strepsirrhine primates classified in the genus ''Arctocebus'' of the family Lorisidae. They are also known as golden pottos because of their yellow or golden coloration. Angwantibos live in tropical Africa and thei ...

'' with the

Calabar angwantibo The Calabar angwantibo (''Arctocebus calabarensis''), also known as the Calabar potto, is a strepsirrhine primate of the family Lorisidae. It shares the genus ''Arctocebus'' with the golden angwantibo (''Arctocebus aureus''). It is closely relate ...

(''Arctocebus calabarensis'') and together they are commonly called the golden pottos. The golden angwantibo is found in

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...

, the

Republic of Congo The Republic of the Congo (french: République du Congo, ln, Republíki ya Kongó), also known as Congo-Brazzaville, the Congo Republic or simply either Congo or the Congo, is a country located in the western coast of Central Africa to the w ...

Equatorial Guinea Equatorial Guinea ( es, Guinea Ecuatorial; french: Guinée équatoriale; pt, Guiné Equatorial), officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea ( es, link=no, República de Guinea Ecuatorial, french: link=no, République de Guinée équatoria ...

and

Gabon Gabon (; ; snq, Ngabu), officially the Gabonese Republic (french: République gabonaise), is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. Located on the equator, it is bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north ...

. Its usual habitat is

rain forest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainforest ...

, but it has also been known to live on

farmland Agricultural land is typically land ''devoted to'' agriculture, the systematic and controlled use of other forms of lifeparticularly the rearing of livestock and production of cropsto produce food for humans. It is generally synonymous with bot ...

. Like the Calabar angwantibo, the golden angwantibo weighs between 266 and 465 grams and has a stumpy tail, abbreviated index fingers, a specialised grooming claw on each foot and a white line on its face. It can be distinguished from its cousin largely by its colour. The fur on its back is red-gold, with a more muted red on its belly. Unlike the Calabar angwantibo, the golden angwantibo has no

nictitating membrane The nictitating membrane (from Latin '' nictare'', to blink) is a transparent or translucent third eyelid present in some animals that can be drawn across the eye from the medial canthus to protect and moisten it while maintaining vision. All ...

. The golden angwantibo is a

nocturnal Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...

and

arboreal Arboreal locomotion is the Animal locomotion, locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some animals may scale trees only occasionally, but others are exclusively arboreal. Th ...

species that is typically found on small branches 5–15 metres above ground. Its diet consists of around 85%

insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...

s (especially

caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder Sym ...

s) and 14%

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

. Its foraging, antipredator, social and reproductive behaviour are extremely similar to those of the Calabar angwantibo.

References

External links

Golden potto (''Arctocebus aureus'')
at The Primata {{Taxonbar, from=Q1150343

golden angwantibo The golden angwantibo (''Arctocebus aureus'') is a strepsirrhine primate of the family Lorisidae. It shares the genus '' Arctocebus'' with the Calabar angwantibo (''Arctocebus calabarensis'') and together they are commonly called the golden potto ...

Fauna of Central Africa Mammals of Cameroon Mammals of the Republic of the Congo Mammals of Equatorial Guinea Mammals of Gabon Primates of Africa