﻿400 
  PROCEEDINGS 
  OF 
  THE 
  NATIONAL 
  MUSEUM 
  vol.98 
  

  

  available 
  from 
  intermediate 
  localities 
  and 
  from 
  surrounding 
  areas 
  

   proves, 
  however, 
  that 
  these 
  characters 
  are 
  simply 
  variations 
  of 
  the 
  

   individual 
  or 
  of 
  its 
  family 
  unit 
  and 
  are 
  not 
  representative 
  of 
  the 
  entu-e 
  

   population 
  of 
  a 
  given 
  locality. 
  Apart 
  from 
  individual 
  differences, 
  

   cranial 
  variations 
  correlated 
  with 
  growth, 
  maturation 
  and 
  senescence 
  

   of 
  the 
  individual, 
  are 
  most 
  remarkable 
  and 
  defy 
  all 
  attempts 
  to 
  define 
  

   them. 
  Other 
  than 
  usual 
  organic 
  differences 
  between 
  sexes 
  are 
  not 
  

   apparent. 
  

  

  As 
  a 
  rule, 
  a 
  family 
  unit 
  consisting 
  of 
  adult 
  male 
  and 
  female 
  and, 
  

   ordinarily, 
  two 
  young, 
  nest 
  together 
  in 
  the 
  hollow 
  trunk 
  of 
  a 
  large 
  

   tree. 
  Any 
  greater 
  number 
  of 
  individuals, 
  including 
  more 
  than 
  two 
  

   sexually 
  mature 
  individuals, 
  Hving 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  nest, 
  is 
  more 
  hkely 
  

   to 
  be 
  the 
  result 
  of 
  inbreeding 
  than 
  of 
  a 
  fortuitous 
  association. 
  This 
  

   is 
  indicated 
  by 
  the 
  uniformity 
  in 
  most 
  characters 
  within 
  such 
  a 
  

   "series." 
  At 
  the 
  same 
  time, 
  the 
  characters 
  of 
  such 
  a 
  "series" 
  may 
  be 
  

   strikingly 
  different 
  from 
  those 
  of 
  other 
  night 
  monkeys 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  

   locality. 
  

  

  The 
  genus 
  Aotus 
  is 
  monotypic. 
  Humboldt 
  (1812, 
  p. 
  306, 
  ed. 
  2) 
  in 
  

   describing 
  Simia 
  trivirgata, 
  the 
  first 
  specific 
  name 
  proposed 
  for 
  the 
  

   genus, 
  remarked 
  that 
  it 
  represented 
  a 
  new 
  family 
  of 
  monkeys 
  "que 
  

   Ton 
  pourroit 
  designer 
  par 
  le 
  nom 
  d'Aotes." 
  The 
  name 
  refers 
  to 
  an 
  

   alleged 
  lack 
  of 
  external 
  ears 
  in 
  night 
  monkeys. 
  Later 
  on 
  in 
  the 
  

   description, 
  Humboldt 
  repeated 
  his 
  observation 
  that 
  the 
  monkey 
  in 
  

   question 
  belonged 
  to 
  a 
  new 
  family, 
  or 
  perhaps 
  to 
  a 
  "nouveau 
  genre 
  

   de 
  quadrumanes, 
  celui 
  des 
  Aotes." 
  Consequently, 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  

   authors 
  (Jardine, 
  Palmer, 
  Ribeiro, 
  Strand, 
  Simpson) 
  have 
  adopted 
  

   Aotes 
  as 
  the 
  generic 
  name. 
  However, 
  Cabrera 
  (1939, 
  p. 
  6) 
  rejected 
  

   Aotes 
  in 
  favor 
  of 
  the 
  more 
  commonly 
  cited 
  Aotus 
  Illiger 
  on 
  the 
  ground 
  

   that 
  Humboldt 
  used 
  Aotes 
  as 
  a 
  vernacular 
  name. 
  This 
  interpreta- 
  

   tion 
  is 
  not 
  tenable. 
  The 
  vernacular 
  name 
  for 
  night 
  monkeys 
  used 
  

   by 
  Humboldt 
  is 
  douroucouli, 
  and 
  the 
  French 
  vernacular 
  of 
  Aotes 
  is 
  

   rendered 
  aotes. 
  It 
  is 
  this 
  last 
  form, 
  not 
  used 
  by 
  Humboldt, 
  that 
  is 
  

   "quoted" 
  by 
  Cabrera 
  in 
  his 
  argument 
  against 
  the 
  validity 
  of 
  Aotes 
  

   as 
  a 
  generic 
  name. 
  An 
  identical 
  misquotation 
  is 
  given 
  by 
  I. 
  Geoff 
  roy 
  

   (Voyage, 
  la 
  Venus, 
  p. 
  48, 
  1855), 
  and 
  this 
  may 
  have 
  been 
  a 
  source 
  of 
  

   Cabrera's 
  conclusions. 
  The 
  only 
  basis 
  for 
  rejection 
  of 
  Aotes 
  is 
  

   Humboldt's 
  own 
  lack 
  of 
  uniformity 
  and 
  consistency 
  in 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  

   this 
  superspecific 
  designation. 
  Aotes 
  was 
  first 
  proposed 
  in 
  1809 
  {iide 
  

   Sherborn, 
  Ann. 
  Mag. 
  Nat. 
  Hist., 
  ser. 
  7, 
  vol. 
  3, 
  p. 
  428, 
  1899) 
  as 
  a 
  

   family, 
  then 
  as 
  either 
  a 
  family 
  or 
  perhaps 
  a 
  genus 
  to 
  contain 
  Simia 
  

   trivirgata. 
  In 
  1811, 
  Illiger 
  established 
  Aotus 
  clearly 
  and 
  indisputably 
  

   as 
  the 
  generic 
  name 
  for 
  night 
  monkeys 
  typified 
  by 
  Simia 
  trivirgata 
  

   Humboldt. 
  Humboldt 
  then 
  adopted 
  Illiger's 
  Aotus 
  in 
  1812 
  {op. 
  cit., 
  

   pp. 
  320, 
  358). 
  

  

  