THE AMERICAN MONKEYS— HOWLER. 



53 



Where the 



Howler is 



Found. 



The tail of the Howler is very long ; its end is 

 ! bare on the under side, abundantly supplied with 

 nerves and blood vessels of very strong muscular 

 power, and therefore perfectly adapted to prehen- 

 sile use. 



The Howlers are widely spread over 

 all parts of South America. Thick, 

 damp, virgin forests are their preferred 

 haunts ; they are only found in the prairies where, 

 in close proximity to water, isolated groups of trees 

 have in course of time developed into small woods. 

 They shun dry parts of the country, but do not 

 .avoid the cooler regions if food and water are plen- 

 tiful. 



The Aluate or Red Howler (Mycctcs seniadus), 

 has a fur of auburn color, merging into golden yel- 

 low on the back ; the hair is short and somewhat 

 stiff. The average length ., 

 of the male Red Howler 

 is about four feet two 

 inches, counting the tail 

 as from twenty-five to 

 thirty inches. The female 

 is smaller and darker. 

 This family of Monkeys 

 is found in nearly all the 

 eastern portion of South 

 America. 



The Caraya or Black 

 Howler {Mycetes niger), 

 has much longer hair, of 

 a uniform black color, 

 reddish on the sides, and 

 the under part of the body 

 assuming a yellowish 

 tinge, in the female. Its 

 extreme length is four 

 feet, one-half of which 

 belongs to the tail. It 

 inhabits Paraguay. 



Travelers' The Howler 

 Accounts of Monkey is an 



Howlers. animal that, 

 since the earliest histor- 

 ical time, has been par- 

 tially known to travelers, 

 and many fictions have 

 been circulated concern- 

 ing its habits and charac- 

 teristics. Some of these 

 are to this day believed 

 by the unobserving whites 

 and the Indians resident 

 in the country inhabited 

 by this creature; but we 

 pay no attention to these 

 doubtful stories, and recount only what is proven. 



Schomburgk says : " For some time after my 

 arrival I had, at sunset and sunrise, heard the fear- 

 ful howling of the Monkeys in the neighboring vir- 

 gin forest, but had never succeeded in seeing them 

 'on my walks. One morning I set out after breakfast, 

 provided with my gun, and a dismal howl just then 

 resounding made me eager to kill some of these noisy 

 disturbers. I hurried on through thick and thin, 

 and after prolonged efforts succeeded in approaching 

 a whole troop, unperceived. There they were, right 

 before me, in a high tree, and the concert they gave 

 might have led people to believe that all the animals 

 in the forest were engaged in deadly combat. Yet 

 I cannot deny that there was some kind of harmony 



in the uproar, for sometimes the whole troop would 

 pause, and then one of the singers would begin, and 

 the dreadful howling would start afresh. The bony 

 drum on the hyoid bone, which gives their voices 

 such exceeding strength, could be seen moving up 

 and down. For a few moments the sounds would 

 resemble the grunting of a Pig ; the next instant 

 they would simulate the roar of the Jaguar rushing 

 upon his prey, and then again came sounds like the 

 deep and terrible snarl of the same animal, when, 

 besieged from all sides, it recognizes its dangerous 

 position. The dismal troop also had its ludicrous 

 features, and the most confirmed misanthrope would 

 have smiled if he had seen the grave and serious 

 faces of the long-bearded vocalists. I had been told 

 that every band had its leader, which differed from 

 all the deep basso voices, not only in his shrill tenor 



CHAMECK SPIDER MONKEY. Belongs to th. 



sponding to the Colobus of Africa, but the Chameck ha; 

 single joint, without a nail. It is found in great numbers ii 

 being a deep brown. (Atcles pcntadactylus.) 



large family of Spider or Thumbless Monkeys, corre- 

 the thumb slightly projecting, consisting of but a 

 Brazil, and is nearly black in color, the face and ears 



but also because of his slim figure. I can corrobo- 

 rate the first statement, but for a slim, graceful figure 

 I looked in vain. On an adjoining tree I saw two 

 silent Monkeys, which I took to be sentinels ; but 

 they certainly were bad ones, for I stood in the im- 

 mediate neighborhood unobserved." 



This description shows us sufficiently that the 

 Howlers are highly peculiar animals. One can say 

 without exaggeration that their whole life is a chain 

 of peculiarities and richly repays observation ; on 

 the other hand it must be acknowledged that the 

 Indians are pardonable in regarding the Howlers as 

 melancholy and uninteresting, and as deserving of 

 contempt. It is not even difficult to account for the 

 calumnies that have been uttered against them when 



