Ateles marginatus E. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire 1809
Creators: name: Russell A. Mittermeier
name: Anthony B. Rylands
name: Don E. Wilson
Publisher: name: Lynx Edicions
Year: 2013
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Chordata
Mammalia
Primates
Atelidae
Ateles
Ateles marginatus

description: 17.
White-whiskered Spider Monkey
Ateles marginatus
French: Atéle de Santarém / German: Weildwangen-Klammeraffe / Spanish: Mono arana de mejillas blancas Other common names: Marimanda Spider Monkey, White-cheeked Spider Monkey, White-faced Spider Monkey, White-fronted Spider Monkey
Taxonomy. Atleles marginatus E. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1809,
Brazil, Rio de Janeiro. Restricted by R. Kellogg and E. Goldman in 1944 to Cameta, Rio Tocantins.
The restriction to Cameta was evidently erroneous or perhaps based on a pet animal. There is no evidence for its occurrence east of the Rio Xingu. There is a zone of apparent interbreeding between this species and A. chamek on the east bank of the upper Rio Tapajos; such individuals are typical A. marginatus in their pelage characters. Monotypic.
Distribution. Endemic to the Brazilian Amazon (states of Mato Grosso and Para), S of the lower Rio Amazonas between the rios Tapajos and Teles Pires (right banks) in the W and the Rio Xingu (left bank) in the E; the upper Rio Teles Pires and the Serra do Cachimbo mark the S limits to its distribution.
Descriptive notes. Head-body 50-70 cm (males) and 35-58 cm (females), tail 75- 90 cm (males) and 62-77 cm (females); weight c.10-4 kg (males) and c.5-8 kg (females). The White-whiskered Spider Monkeyis relatively small. Its fur is entirely black except for a triangular white patch on the forehead and whitish cheek whiskers. Juveniles have a very pale, flesh-colored face that becomes red in adults.
Habitat. Primary lowland rainforest, and riparian, marsh, semi-deciduous, and dry savanna forest.
Food and Feeding. In Cristalino State Park, northern Mato Grosso, the White-whiskered Spider Monkey feeds mainly on ripe fruits and young leaves especially from species ofViolaceae, Fabaceae, and Rutaceae. They eat seeds of Brosimum guianense (Moraceae) and soil from termite nest tunnels.
Breeding. No information is available for this species.
Activity patterns. Preliminary observations of White-whiskered Spider Monkeys in Cristalino State Park indicate an activity budget of ¢.44% traveling, 28-6% resting, 12-2% feeding, and 15-2% engaged in other activities.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. The White-whiskered Spider Monkey is the least known of the Amazonian spider monkeys. A group of at least 24 individuals was seen in surveys in Tapajos National Forest. No estimates of density have been published.
Status and Conservation. CITES Appendix II. Classified as Endangered on The [UCN Red List. The small distribution of the White-whiskered Spider Monkey, the smallest of any of the Amazonian spider monkeys, is bisected by the Transamazon Highway along which there has been considerable settlement and by the Cuiaba-Santarém Highway. It is particularly susceptible to hunting. Accelerated expansion of the agricultural frontier, creating enormous areas of soy bean plantations that accompany the paving of the Cuiaba-Santarém Highway, is a major threat. Surveys are currently ongoing throughout it distribution. It is known to occur in five Brazilian national forests (Altamira, [taituba I, Itaituba II, Tapajos, and Xingu), offering some degree of protection. It also occurs in Upper Xingu National Indigenous Park and, reportedly, on a few private ranches. Surveys along the lower Rio Tapajos, including Tapajos National Forest, show that its forests are fragmented and degraded in many areas. It is not found in forest fragments of less than 100 ha, and it is extinct or at least extremely rare in the northern part of its distribution along the Tapajos, including the northern one-third of the national forest. In two sites (c.3° 20’ S), it was found at relative abundances of 0-14 and 0-7 sightings/ 10 km. It was also found in very low numbers along the southern edge of the national forest adjacent to the Transamazon Highway. Its absence from many areas is ascribed to selective logging (perhaps removing key tree species for the monkeys) and hunting. It occurs in the Cristalino State Park (184,900 ha) in northern Mato Grosso in the southern part of its range.
Bibliography. Cardias & Veiga (2011), Ferrari & Lopes (1990a), Ferrari et al. (2003), Kellogg & Goldman (1944), Martins et al. (1988), Mittermeier, Boubli & Di Fiore (2008), Pimenta & Silva (2005), Ravetta & Ferrari (2009).
description: Published as part of Russell A. Mittermeier, Anthony B. Rylands & Don E. Wilson, 2013, Atelidae, pp. 484-549 in Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 3 Primates, Barcelona :Lynx Edicions on page 540, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.5727205