Mandrill

Mandrillus sphinx

Very Easy (Polygynous)

The **Mandrill** (*Mandrillus sphinx*) is a mid-sized African primate featured in the Standard Edition of *Planet Zoo*.

## Zoopedia Description

### General

**Population in the Wild:** Unknown

The mandrill (or Mandrillus sphinx) is a species of large monkey that lives in the rainforests and plateaus of Cameroon, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea and Congo. They have olive to dark grey fur, a white stomach, and distinctive colouration on the face; a long pink strip runs down the middle of their muzzle to their nostrils, with blue pads on either side. They also have a yellow beard.

Mandrill males are much larger than - and look very different from - females, with extremely bright colours on their faces and hindquarters. Males measure between 75 and 95cm, weighing 19 to 40kg, whereas females average between 55 and 66cm and weigh 15 to 30kg.

Mandrills are classified as a vulnerable species, and while it is not known how many of them are left in the wild, their numbers are thought to be declining significantly. One threat is habitat loss due to deforestation of the rainforests in which they live. However, their greatest threat is hunting; in areas such as Gabon, humans consider the Mandrill as a prime meat. Reserves have been established to protect some of these rainforests, but little is known about the mandrill populations and as a result they are often overlooked. Much more research and further wildlife surveys are needed.

### Social

Mandrills are social animals and live in large groups in the wild. This large group is often divided into smaller sub-groups made up of related females, their offspring and one alpha male. Beta males live on the edges of groups until they become mature enough to be chosen as the alpha by a group of females. Both sexes have a dominance hierarchy - dominant males can be identified by the bright colours on their faces and hindquarters, whereas dominant females have had the most infants.

### Reproduction

Mandrill females will mate with their group's alpha male as well as the solitary beta males, but the alpha male will almost always be the one to father their young. He will also aggressively fend off rival males when females are in oestrus. A female mandrill will be pregnant for 4.5 months before giving birth to a single infant, which is closely cared for by their mother until they are 1 year old, at which point they start to gain some independence. Juveniles stay close to their mothers until they are 6 years old, then males will leave their group to become solitary beta males, while females remain with their mother.

## Animal Care

 FEEDING STATIONS
 FOOD ENRICHMENT
Block of Frozen Fruit · Forage Box Enrichment · Suspended Forager · Small Fixed Roller Feeder · Fruit Spike Tree
Sprinkler · Grab Ball · Climbing Frame · Ice Block · Bobbin · Cardboard Box · Mirror Mobile · Musical Keyboard · Gift Box · Bobbin Drum

## Trivia

### Zoopedia Fun Facts

* The mandrill is the largest monkey species in the world.
* A group of mandrills is called a 'horde'; a horde can include up to 1300 individuals. Female mandrills live in family groups and all help each other with raising infants.
* Mandrills have large cheek pouches that they store food in, often hiding food from their group mates to eat it in peace later.
* The bright colors of a male mandrill's face and hindquarters are caused by testosterone and indicate the male's dominance level.
* In 'The Descent of Man', Charles Darwin wrote that 'no other member in the whole class of mammals is colored in so extraordinary a manner as the adult male mandrill'.