Hanumandril

The **hanumandril** (*Dravidopithecus pictus*), also known as the **Asian mandrill**, the **Indian mandrill**, and the **mandrill macaque**, is a species of macaque that originally did not exist, but has since been created by SciiFii and introduced throughout the rainforests, wetlands, forests, and open woodlands across India and mainland Southeast Asia to help boost biodiversity. Males typically weigh 19–37 kg (42–82 lb), with an average mass of 32.3 kg (71 lb). Females weigh roughly half as much as the male, at 10–15 kg (22–33 lb) and an average of 12.4 kg (27 lb). The hanumandril is distinguished by its deep brown fur with bright orange fur on its lower back and tail, light brown underbelly, a white mane around its face (in males), and prominent buttocks with a blue dot on each side for sexual display and communication.

The hanumandril is an omnivore. It usually consumes plants, of which it eats over a hundred species. It prefers to eat fruits, but will also eat leaves, lianas, bark, stems, and fibers. It also consumes mushrooms and soil. Carnivorously, hanumandrils mostly eat invertebrates, particularly ants, beetles, termites, crickets, spiders, snails, and scorpions. It will also eat eggs, and even vertebrates such as birds, tortoises, frogs, porcupines, rats, and shrews. Hanumandrils likely will eat larger vertebrates when they have the opportunity, such as juvenile blackbucks and other small antelope. Large prey are likely killed with a bite to the nape with the hanumandril's long canines.

Hanumandrils are mostly terrestrial but, like mandrills of Africa, they are more arboreal than African baboons and feed as high as the canopy. When on the ground, hanumandrils walk by digitigrade quadrupedalism (walking on the toes of all four limbs). When in the trees, they often move by lateral jumps. Hanumandrils are mostly diurnal, with activities extending from morning to evening. They sleep in trees at a different site each night. Hanumandrils have been observed using tools; in captivity, hanumandrils have been observed using sticks to clean themselves.

Hanumandrils seem to live in very large, stable groups named 'hordes'. A horde can number in the hundreds of hanumandrils, possibly averaging around 400 individuals and reaching as many as 500. In the wild, males disperse and only female hanumandrils remain in their birth group. This benefits females to establish strong relationships with their relatives which can provide support during conflicts, better offspring and longer lifespan. These hordes are made of adult females and their dependent offspring. Males live a solitary lifestyle, and enter hordes only when females are receptive to mating, which lasts three months each year. All-male bachelor groups are not known to exist. The mating season of the hanumandril takes place from June to October, which is when the sexual swellings of the female occur. They breed every two years. When breeding, a male will follow and guard a female in estrus.

Hanumandril births occur from January to May. Most births in India occur in the wet season, from January to March, and gestation usually lasts 175 days. In captivity, 405 days separate each birth. Young are born with a dull gray coat and pink skin. The females do most of the raising of the young. Alloparenting exists in this species, with female relatives providing care for the young. Males leave their natal groups when they are six years old and stay along the boundary of the social group.

Hanumandrils will make a "silent, bared-teeth face", in which the teeth are bared, the head crest is erect and the head shakes. This may serve as a peaceful form of communication. A hanumandril submits by presenting its rump. With aggression, hanumandrils will stare, bob their heads, and slap the ground. Vocalizations like roars, crowings, and "two-phase grunts" are made for long distances, while "yaks", grunts, "k-alarms", "k-sounds", screams, girneys, and grinds are made at short distances.

The conservation status of the hanumandril is **Least Concern** due to successful conservation efforts, the hanumandril's wide range and its tolerance to many of the human activities. The hanumandrils living in India, especially, they are considered as sacred animals like other monkeys, so they are protected by the law against hunting and as allowed to live in India's cities and suburbs.