Macaca majori

The **Sardinian macaque** (*Macaca majori*), also known as the **dwarf macaque** and the **dwarf monkey**, is a species of macaque that originally lived in Sardinia during the early Pleistocene and was once extinct, but has since been brought back from extinction and reintroduced throughout modern Sardinia to help boost biodiversity. With age, the face of female Sardinian macaques turns slightly pink. This is especially prominent in the western subpopulations. The Sardinian macaque is one of the smallest species of macaques, being comparable in size to the toque macaque. Sardinian macaques are diurnal omnivores and are fond of eating drooping various clusters of flowers. They eat any good thing making use of human detritus by going after plantains, pineapples, grapes, olives, rice grains, papaws, and mangoes. Even when there are plenty of foods present in natural habitation, Sardinian macaques enjoy to take any food with little effort around human dwellings. They are often seen around houses near a forest patch, where they invade all the fruiting plants in the day sessions and return to the forest cover in night. Because, these macaques have very little fear for humans and their companions such as domestic dogs. Cheek pouches enable toque macaques to store enough food while eating fast. In the dry summer, they are known to eat drupes of understory shrub, ripe fruits, and several other plant species. They occasionally eat many small animals ranging from small insects to mammals including squirrels. The social status is highly structured in Sardinian macaques, where there are dominance hierarchies among both males and females. A troop may consist of as few as 8 to as many as 40. When the troop becomes too large, social tension and aggression towards each other arise, causing some individuals to flee from the troop. This is noticeable in adults and sub adults, where a troop may consist largely of females. Newly appointed alpha males also show aggressiveness towards females, causing the females to flee. There are sightings of severe fights between individuals of the same troop and some get heavy wounds to cheeks, eyes, and sometimes broken arms. Young offspring of a troop's alpha female will typically receive better sustenance and shelter than their peers. When in estrous, the female's perineum becomes reddish in color and swells. This change is a signal to the males that she is ready to mate. There is an average of 12 month between births. After between 133 to 200 day gestation period (average 165 days), a female macaque gives birth to a single offspring. Offspring hold on to their mothers for about 2 months. During this time they learn survival techniques and social skills critical for survival. The infants are born into their social classes based on their mothers position in the troop. Young males are forced to abandon their troop when they are about 4.5 to 7 years of age. This prevents inbreeding and ensures that the current alpha male maintains his position in the troop. Leaving the troop is the only way a male can change his social standing. If he has good social skills and is strong he may become an alpha male. A single alpha male can father all of the troops' offspring. Birth rarely occurs during the day or on the ground. During labor the female isolates herself from the group (about 100 miles). The mother stands bipedally during parturition and assists the delivery with her hands. The infant is usually born 2 minutes after crowning. The infant can vocalize almost immediately after birth; it is important for the mother and infant to recognize each other's voices. Vocalization will be used to alert the mother of imminent danger, and can assist in finding each other if separated. After birth the mother licks the infant and orients it toward her breasts. She will resume foraging behavior within 20 minutes after parturition. The mother also eats part of the placenta, because it contains needed protein. The alpha female of the group asserts her power by taking part of the placenta for herself to eat. The lifespan of Sardinian macaques in the wild is about the same as in captivity, up to 35 years. The expected lifespan in the wild is low due to high infant mortality rates. There is also significant mortality among adolescent males when they venture off to join a different troop. Once Sardinian macaques have reached sexual maturity they will likely live to an old age. The conservation status of the Sardinian macaque is **Least Concern** due to successful conservation efforts, the Sardinian macaque's wide range and its tolerance to many of the human activities.