I* 



i 



CLASS MAMMALIA. 



ORDER ANTHROPOIDEA. 



FAMILY CEBID/E. 



Subfamily Aotinae. 



GENUS AOTTJS. THE DOUROUCOULIS. 



1.2:5; C. 1—1; P. 3:^; M. 31^ = 36. 



AOTES Humboldt, Rec. Obs. Zool. et Anat. Comp., 1811, (1815), 

 pp. 306-311, 358, (for Aotus), pi. XXVIII. Type Simia 

 trivirgata Humboldt. 



Nyctipithecus SpLx, Simiar. et Vespert. Bras., 1823, p. 25. 



Nocthora F. Cuv., Hist. Nat. Mamm., V, 1824, livr. XLIII, pi. 



Head round; body short, thick; face encircled by a ruff; ears 

 short, mostly hidden in the fur ; nostrils separated by a broad septum ; 

 eyes very large; tail bushy, the length moderate. Skull: orbits large, 

 approximate, supported by a bony wall ; upper incisors broad, subequal ; 

 canines long; lower incisors projecting forward; first upper premolar 

 very long; last upper molar tricuspidate ; hands and feet small; the 

 semi-opposable thumb and great toe weak. Dorsal and lumbar verte- 

 brae, twenty-two. 



The Douroucoulis, as the species of Actus are generally called, 

 are small animals with round heads and large eyes, and a short face 

 surrounded by a ruff of lengthened hairs. The coat is rather soft and 

 fluffy in texture, the tail of medium length, inclined to be bushy, and 

 non-prehensile. These animals are nocturnal and arboreal ; seldom seen 

 during the day, hiding themselves amid the thick foliage, or in holes 

 of the trees, but at night are very active and noisy, uttering loud 

 'caterwaulings,' and roaming about in search of food which consists 

 of insects, fruit, and small birds when they are fortunate enough 

 to seize one. The Indians call them 'Devil Monkeys,' and being natu- 

 rally of a delicate constitution, they do not live long in captivity. 



