heir diet is composed of tree gum and fruit. Their locomotion is quadrupedal. Claws allow them to climb vertical tree trunks. They leap and cling as a form of travel. Tamarins are family oriented and the males are one of the few that participates in infant care.The third grade is the Oligocene (35 m.y.a.). In this era the wide spread of the monkeys occurred. The Spider monkey is the most interesting species of this era. They originate from rain forest and mountain forest of Central and North America. The food they eat is mainly fruits, leaves and insects. These monkeys are named for their long arms and legs. They can move through trees with great skill and are able to aid their movements with their long tails used as a fifth limb. The tail is used for almost every move they make, climbing trees, reaching for food, grasping branches, balancing and protecting themselves from predators. As I observed from personal experience, they mostly hung upside down and the used their tail to crawl across the ceiling and the walls of the cage like real spiders. Their long fingers are used to hook and grip branches. Spider monkeys do not have thumbs on their hands; reason might be that they can get in the way.The Tufted Capuchin monkey is another interesting species. They come from the tropical forests of Central and South Africa. Fruit, nuts and insects are part of their diets. The Capuchins are very active and intelligent. Again we see a species with a grasping talk and an opposable thumb that they can move around and touch other fingers like humans. Capuchins are fast learners and can easily be taught to perform tricks. They have also been observed using twigs to search for insects in tree hole, just like chimps. At the zoo, I saw a person pointing his finger at the monkey and the rotating it. The monkey looked at that and started rotating its head. I found that very impressive. The Colobus monkey comes from the tropical forests of Central and W...
