Primates in Africa

in Wildlife 101 by Araneta&Tan — November 10, 2009 at 8:51 am | 0 comments

What are Primates?

Primates consist of great apes, monkeys, lemurs and us. There are over 185 species of primates in the world, 51 of which are in Africa, although this could well go up as new discoveries are made every once in a while. The latest such discovery was a new species of mangabey monkey, the Highland Mangabey, found in the Udzungwa Mountains in the south of Tanzania in 2005.

Types of Primate

Great Apes

Great apes consist of gorillas, chimpanzees and orang-utans. All three of these species are endangered. They are characterised by not having tails and by walking on all fours along the ground on their knuckles. They are the most similar types of primate to ourselves.

Monkeys

Monkeys have highly developed brains and tails that can often grasp the branches of a tree like an extra limb. This makes them especially suited to living in the trees where they can move freely. They also have grasping hands that can be used to make tools.

Lemurs

Lemurs are only found in Madagascar. They are very small compared to other primates, and have eyes that face forwards which provides them with depth perception. They have tails like monkeys, but they cannot use them to grip onto things. Both their feet and their hands have opposable fingers and toes.

Characteristics

Primates are characterised as being socially complex creatures. They nearly always live in groups, where social activities are very important to them. This can include grooming, which is not just used for cleaning but for important social bonding.

Primates often have strict social hierarchies with alpha males leading the group. Social activities like grooming often follow this social pattern, with the less important animals grooming the ones that are higher up the rankings.

Primates are also known for their prehensile hands that are used for climbing trees, eating and making tools.

Where do they Live?

The vast majority of primates live in rainforests. This is because they are very much at home amidst the trees, which they often rely on for food and protection. There are only a few species that can survive quite happily away from trees, including chimpanzees and baboons. The latter are the most common types of primates that you are likely to see on a safari to Africa.

Best Places to See Them

Primates are found all over Africa. You can often find monkeys living quite happily in the trees in town centres, but some are a lot harder to find. Two of the most popular types of primates are gorillas and chimpanzees.

Gorillas

There are two species of gorilla – the mountain gorilla and the western lowland gorilla. Mountain gorillas are amongst the most endangered creatures on earth, and the are restricted to a few groups in Central Africa. If you want to see them then you should head on an organised gorilla safari to Uganda or Rwanda.

To see western lowland gorillas, head to Cameroon for the best chance to see them. The Dzangha Sanga Reserve in the south of the country is a great place to encounter them, as well as other primates.

Chimpanzees

Chimpanzees are more widely distributed than gorillas, and they too can be found in Cameroon. However, one of the best places to see them is in Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania. This is where Jane Goodall set up her research programme, the most important of its kind in the world.

Primate Conservation

There are a number of charities and organisations that you can support if you want to help the plight of primates across Africa and the world.

International Primate Rescue is one of the largest that works with all types of primates.

The Jane Goodall Institute was set up by Jane Goodall and supports the plight of chimpanzees.

Conservation International supports primates across the world, as well as working on other conservation programmes.

The Gorilla Organisation works to support gorillas in Africa and protect them from extinction.

Tags: charities gorillas primates