Taxonomy

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Mammalia

Order: Primates

Suborder: Haplorhini

Infraorder: Simiiformes

Family: Cercopithecidae

Subfamily: Colobinae

Evolution

The snub nosed monkey has no subspecies. The Snub-Nosed Monkey has been around for approximately 2000 - 2500 years. the closest living relative to the Snub-Nosed Monkey is the Douc, and they used to be regarded as the same genus. some of its ancestors include the Baboon, the Mandrill, and the Macaques. 

Description

They have relatively multicolored and long fur, particularly at the shoulders and backs. These Monkeys get their name from the short stump of a nose on their round faces, with nostrils arranged forward. 

Snub-Nosed Monkeys grow to about 20-33 in and their tails can grow to 23-38 in, meaning their tails are often longer than their height. They tend to weigh about 30 lbs and have an average lifespan of 20-25 years. females tend to be smaller weighing about 20 pounds. males tend to get red swelling around the corners of their mouths.

Habitat

Snub-nosed Monkeys live in central china in conifer forests high up at elevations of 6000-9000 feet above sea level. the average rainfall these monkeys get is about 300-600 mm of rain annually. they prefer mixed evergreen forests but will occupy other secondary forests if necessary. They share their habitat with giant pandas. A golden snub-nosed monkey will sometimes migrate to lower altitudes in winter, when temperatures can drop below freezing, to as low as 17 degrees fahrenheit.

Distribution 

Snub nosed monkeys are only located in central China and northern Vietnam. They are not invasive at all.

Diet

Golden snub-nosed monkeys are primarily diurnal herbivores, consuming mainly lichens followed by other types of plant foods including trees, shrubs and vines as well as insects. Snub-nosed monkeys don't really have a set eating time since they eat lichens and the live in trees their food is accessible to them at all times and they graze and eat whenever. They like bananas but their digestive system isn't built for it.

Social Structure

Snub-nosed monkeys live in large troops of 500 monkeys, these groups then divide into smaller groups consisting of 4-8 monkeys. Golden snub-nosed monkeys are usually considered to have two tiers of social organization with smaller social groups almost always conglomerating into well-organized larger troops, which can contain up to several hundred individuals and as many as 600. The basic social groups are of two types, the multi-female one-male unit and the all-male unit. 

Reproduction

The mating season typically lasts from September to November; however, breeding behavior is displayed throughout the year. Although adult females tend to mainly socialize with one adult male, females often initiate extra-pair copulations with other males resulting in a high proportion of offspring being fathered by extra-pair males. Golden snub-nosed monkeys have only 1 baby at a time, unless they have twins, triplets, etc. They mate a lot like humans do 

Development

The stages of development include the exact same in humans:

• Infancy

• Toddler

• Childhood

• Adolescence

• Adulthood

These monkeys reach sexual maturity at 4 1/2 years for females and 1-2 years later in males. Males have slightly darker fur and red swelling around the corners of their mouths.

Causes of Death

The most common enemies of the Golden Snub-nosed Monkeys are mammals like dhole, wolf, Asiatic golden cat, and leopard, as well as large birds of prey including golden eagle and northern goshawk. Age is a key factor affecting sexual selection, as many physical and social traits are age-related.  the most common disease in snub nosed monkeys is forestomach dysfunction. its not lethal and relatively rare but these monkeys haven't been studied much.

Competition

sexual competition - looking for mates

competition for dominance 

competition for food 

who occupies the trees - niche competition

some of the lichen is eaten by invasive species in china leaving less food for the monkeys

IUCN Rating

Critically endangered

there are about 3,000 monkeys left in the wild with the population decreasing its considered one of the world's most endangered animals.

Impacts of humans

These monkeys have suffered poaching, habitat loss, and distribution of monkeys all due to humans. but humans are trying to restore the Snub-nosed monkey population. With several funding organizations, and many support groups the monkey population is trying to make a comeback. Humans have been trying to help since 2010 with little to no improvements.