**포토원숭이** 또는 **포토**(''Perodicticus potto'')는 로리스과에 속하는 곡비원류 영장류이다. **포토원숭이속**(''Perodicticus'')의 유일한 종이다. "포토"(Potto)라는 명칭은 꼬리없는 원숭이라는 뜻인 아프리카 단어 "파타"(pata)에서 유래했다. 포토원숭이는 또한 **보스만포토**(Bosman's Potto)로도 알려져 있는 데, 이는 발견자로 추측되는 이름에서 유래한 것으로 보인다.

다음과 같이 4종의 아종이 확인되고 있다:

조금 가까운 관계에 있는 종들은 또한 자신의 이름에 "포토"(potto)라는 명칭을 포함하고 있다: 앙완티보로 알려져 있는 2종의 골든포토와 가짜포토원숭이(False Potto).

## 서식지
포토원숭이는 기니부터 콩고민주공화국 북부의 케냐와 우간다까지, 아프리카 열대 우림 지역에서 서식한다. 이들은 야행성동물로 낮에는 하루종일 나무 위에서 자는 수목형 생활을 하고, 나무 위에서는 거의 내려오지 않는다.

## 생리학
포토원숭이는 30 ~ 40cm까지 자라고, 짧은 꼬리(3 ~ 10&nbsp;cm)를 지니고 있으며, 몸무게는 최대 1.5 kg에 달한다. 촘촘하고 부드러운 털은 회갈색을 띤다. 나뭇가지를 단단히 붙잡는, 네 손가락과 마주보는 엄지손가락을 가지고 있음에도 불구하고, 집게손가락은 퇴화되어 있다.<!--At the second toes of the hind legs they have the fine claw typical for strepsirrhines. Three of the vertebrae in the Potto's neck have sharp points and nearly pierce the skin; these are used as defensive weapons. Both males and females have large scent glands under the tail , which they use to mark their territories and to reinforce pair bonds. Pottos have a distinct odor that some observers have likened to curry.

## Locomotion and diet
Pottos move slowly and carefully, always gripping a branch with at least two limbs. They are also quiet creatures. Their commonest call is a high-pitched **tsic'',' which is used mainly between mother and offspring.

Studies of stomach contents have shown that the Potto diet consists of about 65% fruit, 21% tree gums and 10% insects. Pottos have also occasionally been known to catch bats and small birds. Their strong jaws enable them to eat fruits and lumps of dried gum that are too tough for other tree-dwellers. The insects they eat tend to have a strong smell, possibly because more palatable insects are snatched up by faster-moving creatures.

## Territorial and reproductive behaviour
Pottos inhabit firm territories which they mark with urine and glandular secretions, and same-sex intruders are vehemently guarded against, although each male's territory generally overlaps with that of two or more females. Females have been known to donate part of their territories to their daughters, but sons leave their mother's territory upon maturity.

As part of their courting rituals, Pottos often meet for bouts of mutual grooming. This is frequently performed while they hang upside down from a branch. Grooming consists of licking, combing fur with the grooming claw and teeth, and anointing with the scent glands. Pottos mate face-to-face while hanging upside down from a branch.

After a gestation of about 170 days the female gives birth. Births are typically of a single young, but twins are known to occur. The young first are clasped to the belly of the mother, but later she carries them on her back. She can also hide her young in the leaves while searching for food. After about four to five months they are weaned and are fully mature after about 18 months.

## Predators and defences
Pottos have relatively few predators, because large mammalian carnivores cannot climb to the treetops where they live, and the birds of prey in this part of Africa are diurnal. One population of chimpanzees living in Mont Assirik, Senegal, was observed to eat Pottos, taking them from their sleeping places during the day; however, this behaviour has not been observed in chimps elsewhere. Pottos living near villages face some predation from humans, who hunt them as bushmeat. They are sometimes harassed by African Palm Civets, although African Palm Civets are largely frugivorous.

If threatened, a Potto will hide its face and neck-butt its opponent, making use of its unusual vertebrae. Pottos can also deliver a powerful bite. Their saliva contains compounds that cause the wound to become inflamed.

The highest recorded life span for a Potto in captivity is 26 years.

## 지각과 사회 행동
In a study of prosimian cognition conducted in 1964, Pottos were seen to explore and manipulate unfamiliar objects, but only when those objects were baited with food. They were found to be more curious than lorises and lesser bushbabies, but less so than lemurs. Ursula Cowgill, a biologist at Yale University who looked after six captive Pottos for several decades, noticed that they appeared to form altruistic relationships. The captive Pottos were seen to spend time with a sick companion and to save food for an absent one. However, there is no confirmation that this behaviour occurs in the wild.

## 인류 문화에서 포토원숭이
The Potto is not particularly familiar to people outside Africa, but some will know it from its appearance in Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin novels. Virginia Woolf's nickname was 'Potto,' and James Thurber sketched a Potto for a series of animal cartoons. André Gide wrote an autobiographical story entitled ''Dindiki ou le pérodictique potto''.
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