Ateles

Geoffroy's spider monkey Ateles geoffroyi, photographed by Rhett A. Butler.

Belongs within: Platyrrhini.

Ateles, the spider monkeys, is a genus of agile arboreal monkeys found in Central and northern South America.

Characters (from Nowak 1999): Head and body length 382-635 mm, tail length 508-890 mm. Hair usually coarse, stringy, occasionally soft and fine; underfur lacking; coloration above yellowish grey, darker grey, reddish brown, darker brown or almost black; sides golden yellow to rufous; underparts lighter, usually whitish or yellowish; face usually black with light eye-rings, occasionally flesh-coloured. Clitoris of female greatly enlarged. Tail and legs exceptionally long relative to body length; tail prehensile and extremely flexible. Thumbs poorly developed or absent.

<==Ateles Geoffroy 1806 (see below for synonymy) C57
    |--*A. paniscus (Linnaeus 1758) (see below for synonymy) C57
    |    |--A. p. paniscus (see below for synonymy) C57
    |    `--A. p. chamek (Humboldt 1812) (see below for synonymy) C57
    |--A. belzebuth Geoffroy 1806 [=Simia belzebuth] C57
    |    |--A. b. belzebuth (see below for synonymy) C57
    |    |--A. b. hybridus Geoffroy 1829 (see below for synonymy) C57
    |    `--A. b. marginatus Geoffroy 1809 (see below for synonymy) C57
    |--A. fusciceps Gray 1866 [=A. fuscipes (l. c.), Ateleus fusciceps] C57
    |    |--A. f. fusciceps C57
    |    `--A. f. robustus Allen 1914 [incl. A. dariensis Goldman 1915] C57
    `--A. geoffroyi C57
         |--A. g. geoffroyi C57
         |--A. g. frontatus BP87
         |--A. g. grisescens Gray 1866 (see below for synonymy) C57
         |--A. g. ornatus ANG03
         |--A. g. panamensis BP87
         `--A. g. vellerosus G69

Ateles Geoffroy 1806 [=Ateleus Fischer 1813, Atelius Fischer 1813; incl. Ameranthropoides Montandon 1929, Atelocheirus Geoffroy 1806, Montaneia Ameghino 1911, Sapajus Kerr 1792 (nom. rej.), Sapaja Ritgen 1874, Sapajou Lacépède 1799] C57

Ateles belzebuth belzebuth Geoffroy 1806 [incl. A. bartlettii Gray 1867, A. braccatus Pelzeln 1883 (n. n.), Cebus brissonii Fischer 1829, A. chuva Schlegel 1876, A. fuliginosus Kuhl 1820, A. problema Schlegel in Jentink 1892 (n. n.)] C57

Ateles belzebuth hybridus Geoffroy 1829 [=Ateleus hybridus, Eriodes hybridus; incl. A. belzebuth brunneus Gray 1870, Ameranthropoides loysi Montandon 1929] C57

Ateles belzebuth marginatus Geoffroy 1809 [=Ateleus marginatus, Cebus marginatus, Simia marginata; incl. Ateles albifrons Schinz 1844 (n. n.), Ateles frontalis Bennett 1831] C57

Ateles geoffroyi grisescens Gray 1866 [=Ateleus grisescens; incl. Ateles cucullatus Gray 1866, Ateleus cucullatus, Ateles rufiventris Sclater 1872, Ateleus rufiventris] C57

*Ateles paniscus (Linnaeus 1758) [=Simia paniscus, Ateleus paniscus, Cebus paniscus, Sapajou paniscus, Simia (Sapajus) paniscus; incl. Ateles subpentadactylus Desmarest 1820] C57

Ateles paniscus chamek (Humboldt 1812) [=Simia chamek, Cebus chamek; incl. Ateles longimembris Allen 1914, A. ater peruvianus Lönnberg 1940] C57

*Ateles paniscus paniscus (Linnaeus 1758) [incl. A. ater Cuvier 1823, Ateleus ater, Cebus ater, Sapajou ater, C. paniscus cayennensis Fischer 1829, Ateles pentadactylus Geoffroy 1806, C. pantadactylus, Sapajou pentadactylus, C. paniscus surinamensis Fischer 1829] C57

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[ANG03] Asher, R. J., M. J. Novacek & J. H. Geisler. 2003. Relationships of endemic African mammals and their fossil relatives based on morphological and molecular evidence. Journal of Mammalian Evolution 10 (1-2): 131-194.

[BP87] Burton, J. A., & B. Pearson. 1987. Collins Guide to the Rare Mammals of the World. Collins: London.

[C57] Cabrera, A. 1957. Catalogo de los mamiferos de America del Sur. I (Metatheria - Unguiculata - Carnivora). Revista del Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales “Bernardino Rivadavia” e Instituto Nacional de Investigacion de Las Ciencias Naturales, Ciencias Zoológicas 4 (1): 1-307.

[G69] Goodwin, G. G. 1969. Mammals from the State of Oaxaca, Mexico, in the American Museum of Natural History. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 141 (1): 1-269, 40 pl.

Nowak, R. M. 1999. Walker's Mammals of the World. JHU Press.