Azaras's capuchin or hooded capuchin (''Sapajus cay'') is a species of
robust capuchin
Robust capuchin monkeys are capuchin monkeys in the genus ''Sapajus''. Formerly, all capuchin monkeys were placed in the genus ''gracile capuchin monkey, Cebus''. ''Sapajus'' was erected in 2012 by Jessica Lynch Alfaro et al. to differentiate the ...
. It occurs in eastern
Paraguay
Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...
, southeastern
Bolivia
Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...
, northern
Argentina
Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
, and
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
, at
Mato Grosso do Sul
Mato Grosso do Sul ( ) is one of Federative units of Brazil, Brazil's 27 federal units, located in the southern part of the Central-West Region, Brazil, Central-West Region, bordering five Brazilian states: Mato Grosso (to the north), Goiás and ...
and
Mato Grosso
Mato Grosso ( – ) is one of the states of Brazil, the List of Brazilian states by area, third largest by area, located in the Central-West Region, Brazil, Central-West region. The state has 1.66% of the Brazilian population and is responsible ...
states, in
Pantanal
The Pantanal () is a natural region encompassing the world's largest tropical wetland area, and the world's largest Flooded grasslands and savannas, flooded grasslands. It is located mostly within the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul, but i ...
. Its habitat consists of subtropical, humid, semi-deciduous, gallery forests and forested regions of the Pantanals. Formerly, it was considered a subspecies of black-striped capuchin, according to Groves (2005) with the name ''Cebus libidinosus paraguayanus'', but Silva Jr. (2001) considered it a separated species. They are considered as frugivores-insectivores which means that their diet mainly consists of a variety of fruits, seeds, arthropods, frogs, small mammals, etc.
Evolution and taxonomy
''Cebus'' and ''Sapajus'' have been widely recognized as subgenera–or groups–of the capuchin monkey's subfamily ''Cebinae''. There is data hinting towards an estimated separation time between these two
subgenera
In biology, a subgenus ( subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus.
In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between the ge ...
of about 6.2 million years. Evidence indicates that during the
Miocene
The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...
, these two groups diverged from each other due to the emergence of the Amazon river; ''Cebus'' (gracile capuchin) expanded northwards towards the
Amazon rainforest
The Amazon rainforest, also called the Amazon jungle or Amazonia, is a Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, moist broadleaf tropical rainforest in the Amazon biome that covers most of the Amazon basin of South America. This basin ...
, and ''Sapajus'' (robust capuchin) expanded southwards towards the Atlantic forest. However, during the
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene ( ; referred to colloquially as the ''ice age, Ice Age'') is the geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fin ...
, ''Sapajus'' expanded northwards once again towards the Amazon, becoming
sympatric
In biology, two closely related species or populations are considered sympatric when they exist in the same geographic area and thus frequently encounter each other. An initially interbreeding population that splits into two or more distinct spe ...
with ''Cebus''. Nowadays, supported by ample evidence, it is accepted that ''Sapajus'' and ''Cebus'' are two different groups, and even considered two different genera. Silva JS's morphometric analysis categorized ''Sapajus'' species into three groups based on their geographical location; the Amazonian species, the species from central South America (south of the
Cerrado
The Cerrado () is a vast ecoregion of Tropics, tropical savanna in central Brazil, being present in the states of Goiás, Mato Grosso do Sul, Mato Grosso, Tocantins, Maranhão, Piauí, Bahia, Minas Gerais, São Paulo (state), São Paulo, Paraná ...
and north of the Rio Doce), and the species of the Atlantic forest (south of the Rio Doce). ''Sapajus'' ''cay'' belongs to the second group.
Phylogenetic analysis
In biology, phylogenetics () is the study of the evolutionary history of life using observable characteristics of organisms (or genes), which is known as phylogenetic inference. It infers the relationship among organisms based on empirical data ...
revealed that ''Sapajus'' ''cay'' was the product of the second divergence event (following ''Sapajus nigritus robustus'') that occurred in the Atlantic forest group before the ''Sapajus'' expansion towards the Amazon during the Pleistocene. However, the true current distribution of the ''Sapajus'' ''cay'' is a matter of debate between leading parties, and it is mainly due to the phenotypic characteristics of populations that live in different geographical locations.
Characteristics
Azara's capuchin monkeys are considered as one of the tufted capuchins, but the tuft will fully develop only after the individual reaches adulthood. Sexual maturity is estimated to be reached at the age of 4–5 years old for females, and around 8 years old for males. In captivity, individuals can live up to 50 years, while in the wild the average is around 30 years.
This species of capuchin monkey presents slight
sexual dimorphism
Sexual dimorphism is the condition where sexes of the same species exhibit different Morphology (biology), morphological characteristics, including characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most dioecy, di ...
; the male being larger in body size. The female weighs between , whereas the male can weigh between . The average male individual averages a height of 0.8m from nose to tail, while the female is slightly shorter. They have long feet and tails; the tails can be as long as half their body height. Another distinction from the rest of the ''Sapajus'' species–according to Silva–is that the ''S. cay (Sapajus cay)'' has significantly smaller
cranium
The skull, or cranium, is typically a bony enclosure around the brain of a vertebrate. In some fish, and amphibians, the skull is of cartilage. The skull is at the head end of the vertebrate.
In the human, the skull comprises two prominent ...
size, even at adulthood.
They normally present medium-length fur with several different tones of brown throughout the body. Their limbs are usually a darker colour, as well as their tuft. Compared to the rest of the ''Sapajus'' species, ''S. cay'' exhibits a dark stripe of hair on the front of their ears, which resembles sideburns. There has been major disagreements on the true
taxonomic
280px, Generalized scheme of taxonomy
Taxonomy is a practice and science concerned with classification or categorization. Typically, there are two parts to it: the development of an underlying scheme of classes (a taxonomy) and the allocation ...
nature of these species because of their high morphological variability. ''S. cay'' individuals exhibit inter and intra-population polymorphism, they also exhibit sexual dimorphism and significant changes in their morphology at different ages.
omnivore
An omnivore () is an animal that regularly consumes significant quantities of both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize t ...
s, who live in social communities and travel throughout their territory looking for food. Research indicates that these capuchins spend most of their time resting, travelling and foraging. While there were significant differences in the behaviours of males and females, there were not many significant differences in their diet.
Diet
Males were observed to spend more time on the ground or near it, resting and surveying the area. Females, on the other hand, spend significantly more time browsing and eating on the canopy of the sleeping trees. These differences in behaviours is attributed to the only difference in their diet. Males tend to eat larger objects than females (prey or plant matter); noticeably, only large males have been seen eating small vertebrates. This difference in the size of the meal is thought to be the reason why males spend more time resting (digesting), while the females spend more time foraging in order to compensate for the smaller size of their meals. Research showed that regardless of the sex, the largest part of their diet are fruits, followed by seeds; lastly, plant parts and invertebrates constituted the rest of their diet. It is a host of the acanthocephalan intestinal parasite '' Pachysentis rugosus''.
Social dynamics
The size of groups can vary greatly, some can be less than a dozen individuals, whereas some groups have been recorded to have up to 44 individuals. Their groups consist of a multi-male/multi-female dynamic, with an alpha male who is usually the largest and most ferocious. This alpha male typically serves as a protective figure, who also controls the access to food, and has priority to mate with the females. These groups normally travel continuously throughout their home range, without leaving its boundaries. Only under extreme conditions will they choose to explore new territories. Research indicates that these species have the ability to learn and retain information for long periods of time, which is a key quality for their high adaptability. Long-term memory serves as a tool in order to recognize patterns for profitable and dangerous phenomena. Tujage et al. (2015) were able to show that individuals can deduce that if one fruit tree is producing fruit, then all the others of the same species must be producing as well, so the individuals would actively look for these.
Other behaviours
Many behaviours similar to other capuchin species have been observed in some communities, but their exact reasons have not been concretely proven. Some individuals have been seen to rub the leaves of certain citrus trees on their fur, while exhibiting other protective behaviours. It is thought that this behaviour is triggered when threats are near, and the strong smell of the leaves play a part.
Tool use has also been documented in ''S. cay'' individuals. Even though the consumption of hard shelled fruits and seeds is not preferred, it forms part of their diet. These capuchins hold the object with both hands, and smash it against tree branches that act as an anvil. High ranking adults are especially successful at this, while low ranking adults will sometimes wait for the leftovers of the processed food.
Distribution and habitat
The habitat of the capuchin's monkey species, respectively ''Cebus'' and ''Sapajus'', is located in the tropical and subtropical forests of
South
South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east.
Etymology
The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...
and
Central America
Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...
. Though they occupy a wide range of territory, their population currently only reside on nearly 200 hectares (around 500 acres). Their habitat is hot and humid all year round, with high quantity of precipitation and vegetation. They have a high level of behavioural as well as ecological flexibility, allowing them to reside in a wide range of habitats, including bush lands and savannas. In fact, the ''Sapajus cay'' species habitat is distributed among countries such as northern
Argentina
Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
, south-eastern
Bolivia
Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...
, and eastern
Paraguay
Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...
.
They also inhabit
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
, where they are located southwest of the Amazon, approximately south to the states of Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, as well as southeast of Goiás state. Some populations of ''Sapajus Cay'' monkeys reside in northern Argentina, in the provinces of
Jujuy
San Salvador de Jujuy (), commonly known as Jujuy and locally often referred to as San Salvador, is the capital and largest city of Jujuy Province in northwest Argentina. Also, it is the seat of the Doctor Manuel Belgrano Department. It lies near ...
,
Salta
Salta () is the capital and largest city in the Provinces of Argentina, Argentine province of Salta Province, the same name. With a population of 618,375 according to the 2010 census, it is also the List of cities in Argentina, 7th most-populous ...
,
Formosa
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The island of Taiwan, formerly known to Westerners as Formosa, has an area of and makes up 99% of the land under ROC control. It lies about across the Taiwan Strait f ...
and Chaco. The ''Sapajus Cay'' is also the only representative of its genus established in Paraguay, where they are located in the humid semi deciduous Alto Parana Atlantic Forest.
Endangerment and threats
To this day, it is reported that there are no major threats for the ''Sapajus cay'' species in Paraguay.
Indigenous peoples
There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...
hunt this species for food, but their population is low, hence not creating a significant threat. The only threat in Paraguay is
forest loss
Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal and destruction of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then land conversion, converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or u ...
due to
anthropogenic
Anthropogenic ("human" + "generating") is an adjective that may refer to:
* Anthropogeny, the study of the origins of humanity
Anthropogenic may also refer to things that have been generated by humans, as follows:
* Human impact on the enviro ...
causes or natural disasters. It is estimated that ''Sapajus cay'' monkeys are the most common kept primate pet in Paraguay, hence there is awareness of its threats, assisting conservation efforts.
However in Brazil, the ''Sapajus cay'' species are listed as highly vulnerable. In fact, there are many extreme threats to the species survival rate. These include fire, rural settlements, agriculture, livestock keeping, urban sprawl, vulnerability to epidemics,
deforestation
Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal and destruction of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. Ab ...
, increasing road and energy infrastructure, habitat isolation, habitat reduction, pollution, hunting and life capture for pet trade. High population-density in areas South and Central America as well as legal and illegal selective
logging
Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidder, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or trunk (botany), logs onto logging truck, trucks
In addition, their populations inhabiting what is left of the Argentinian forest are subject to serious threats as a consequence of habitat modification and conversion for
agriculture
Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...
production, as well as
poaching
Poaching is the illegal hunting or capturing of wild animals, usually associated with land use rights.
Poaching was once performed by impoverished peasants for subsistence purposes and to supplement meager diets. It was set against the huntin ...
(illegal hunting). Industrialization has altered the natural environment, negatively affecting Argentina's ecosystems. This can potentially result in inter-species
pathogen
In biology, a pathogen (, "suffering", "passion" and , "producer of"), in the oldest and broadest sense, is any organism or agent that can produce disease. A pathogen may also be referred to as an infectious agent, or simply a Germ theory of d ...
ic exchange, therefore increasing the death rate of the ''Sapajus Cay''.
Conservation
In Brazil, the Azara's capuchin monkey has not been well studied, resulting in poor conservation actions due to lack of ecological knowledge of this species. The ''Sapajus cay'' species is in danger, with threat of
extinction
Extinction is the termination of an organism by the death of its Endling, last member. A taxon may become Functional extinction, functionally extinct before the death of its last member if it loses the capacity to Reproduction, reproduce and ...
. Drastic regional conservation actions are required for their survival.
In Argentina, the Azara's capuchin is conserved and protected in these following areas; El Rey National Park(44,162 ha),
Calilegua National Park
Calilegua National Park () is a federally protected area in Jujuy Province, Argentina. It was established on July 19, 1979, and is also the largest protected area in Argentina dedicated to conserving subtropical evergreen mountain rainforests kn ...
, the Province of Jujuy (76,000 ha), and in Baritú National Park (72,000 ha).
In Bolivia, they are protected in Kaa-Iya National Park.
In Brazil, they are protected in
Pantanal Matogrossense National Park
The Pantanal Matogrossense National Park () is a national park in the state of Mato Grosso at the border to Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil.
Location
Pantanal Matogrossense National Park has an area of . It is in the Pantanal biome.
The park was cre ...
, Serra da Bodoquena National Park (77,021 ha), Rio Negro State Park (7,000 ha), Segredo Stream State Park (189 ha), SESC Pantanal Private Reserve (RPPN) (106,31 ha), Fazenda Acurizal Private Reserve (13,665 ha), Fazenda Penha Private Reserve (RPPN) (13,409 ha), Fazenda Boqueirão Private Reserve (RPPN) (173,60 ha), Fazenda Singapura Private Reserve (RPPN) (456 ha), the Fazenda América Private Reserve (RPPN) (401 ha), Fazenda Trevo Private Reserve (RPPN) (27,75 ha), the Fazenda Floresta Negra Private reserve (RPPN) (971,06 ha), Fazenda Nova Querência Private Reserve (50 ha in 8,500 ha of Gallery Forest) and the Fazenda São Marcos (600 ha).