Facts About Monkeys

Monkeys are small to medium-sized primates that use vocalizations and facial expressions as well as body movements to communicate. Their long tails can help balance their bodies while swinging through the trees or on all fours when on the ground (quadrupedalism). They may move by clinging to branches, climbing up or down trees or using their arms to swing.

Many monkeys live in large groups called troops. They travel during the day to find food and groom each other, and they share the duties of raising offspring. Some, like the gray titi monkeys of Bolivia, live in harems with an adult male and several females. Unattached adult males, known as bachelors, sometimes form their own groups.

Because of their inquisitive minds, monkeys are good at problem-solving. They can learn to grasp objects with their hands and fingers, and they have well-developed vision. They also have hind legs that are longer than their forelimbs, which makes them great tree-swingers.

In the wild, monkeys can die of disease, injury and predation. But in captivity, monkeys can live into their late twenties and thirties. The TNPRC uses a variety of techniques to help monkeys co-operate with being handled and having procedures like blood samples taken, so that the experience is less stressful for them.

In scientific studies, monkeys are used to study a variety of things, from the effects of certain drugs on the brain to how different types of foods affect heart health and immune systems. But monkeys are most often used to test new drugs before they are tested in humans and patients.