Ateles fusciceps, Gray, 1866

Russell A. Mittermeier, Anthony B. Rylands & Don E. Wilson, 2013, Atelidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 3 Primates, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 484-549 : 538

14 .

Brown-headed Spider Monkey

Ateles fusciceps

French: Atéle a téte brune / German: Braunkopf-Klammeraffe / Spanish: Mono arana de cabeza parda Other common names: Black-headed Spider Monkey; Colombian Black Spider Monkey (rufiventris)

Taxonomy. Ateles fusciceps Gray, 1866 ,

South America. Restricted by R. Kellogg and E. Goldman in 1944 to Ecuador, Hacienda Chinipamba, near Penaherrera, Imbabura Province at 1500 m.

The form rufiventris is sometimes considered a distinct species. A hybrid zone exists in Panama between rufiventris and A. geoffroyi ornatus, even though cytogenetic studies by M. A. A. Medeiros and coworkers, published in 1997, indicated that rufiventris was reproductively isolated from A. geoffroyi . In a review in 1975, P. G. Heltne and L. M. Kunkel argued that the form robustus is a junior synonym of rufiventris. Two subspecies recognized.

Subspecies and Distribution. A. [. fusciceps Gray, 1866 — NW Ecuador, W of the Andes, historically in the provinces of Esmeraldas and Carchi, from the Colombian border S to the Cordillera de Colonche in the Guayas Province (most S record is in “Puente sobre el rio Chimbo,” Chimborazo Province), but today it is restricted to two remnant populations (Awa Ethnological Reserve N of the Rio Mira, and Cotacachi-Cayapas Ecological Reserve and adjacent Los Cedros Protected Forest and surrounding forests S of the Rio Mira). A. f. rufiventris Sclater, 1872 — E Panama (Atlantic slope) and W Colombia from the Uraba region in NW Antioquia, N through Cordoba, Sucre, and N Bolivar departments (N distributional limit on the S bank of the Canal del Dique, Cartagena), W of the Rio Cauca to the coast, E to the lower Rio Cauca along the W bank to SC Antioquia (the Cerro Pirre or the Rio Tucuti marks the border with A. geoffroyi grisescens), and S to the Cordillera Occidental of the Andes in SW Colombia (the most southerly record is Barabacoas, Narino Department).

Descriptive notes. Head-body 37-64 cm (males) and 30-54 cm (females), tail 71- 86 cm (males) and 66-77 cm (females); weight ¢.8-9 kg (males) and c.8 kg (females). Fur of the Brown-headed Spider Monkeyis coarse and dark, with varying amounts of brown on cheeks and crown and sparse white hairs on lips and chin. Cheek hairs meet those of the crown in a small eye-to-ear crest. The nominate subspecies is brownishblack above with a yellow-brown anterior crown, grading from brown to black on the nape. It often has a white moustache and beard. The “Colombian Black Spider Monkey” (A. f. rufiventris ) is glossy-black, except for a few whitish or golden hairs on cheeks and muzzle, and a slight brownish tinge on the forehead. Skin of the face is black. The genital area is reddish.

Habitat. [Lowland to lower montane primary rainforest. In Ecuador, the Brown-headed Spider Monkey inhabits tropical lowland and subtropical humid forests at elevations of 100-1700 m. It survives today in the pre-montane wet forest of Cotacachi-Cayapas Ecological Reserve at elevations of 300-1200 m, butitis very scarce at higher elevations of 2500 m. The Colombian Black Spider Monkey occurs in dry, humid, and cloud forest, occupying the greatest range of forest habitats of any Colombian spider monkey. It occurs as high as 2000-2500 m above sea level in the Cordilllera Occidental.

Food and Feeding. There is no information available for this species.

Breeding. Interbirth intervals are at 22-36 months (average 33 months). Infants have a pink face and red ears. They are dependent on nursing for ¢.10 months and suckle until they are 18-20 months old. Individuals may live up to 24 years.

Activity patterns. There is no information available for this species.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. Densities of Brown-headed Spider Monkeys, based on calls, were 7-5 ind/km? at 332 m above sea level to 0-9 ind/km? at 1570 m. In 2007, X. Cueva and W. Pozo surveyed five sites in the buffer zone of the Cotacachi-Cayapas Ecological Reserve and recorded densities of 0-6-16-6 ind/km?, with an average subgroup size of 3-8 individuals.

Status and Conservation. CITES Appendix II. Classified as Critically Endangered on The IUCN Red List, including both subspecies. Forest loss and hunting have devastated populations of both subspecies of the Brown-headed Spider Monkey. The nominate subspecies is protected by national law in Ecuador. It is restricted to three small forested areas: Awa Ethnological Reserve, Cotacachi-Cayapas Ecological Reserve, and adjacent Los Cedros Protected Forest in north-western Ecuador. Logging, road construction, and hunting are damaging forests and associated wildlife in Awa. At Los Cedros, density is 1-2 ind/km?®. A recent attempt to recount the population there failed because numbers were so low. Total population of the nominate subspecies is believed to be in the low hundreds. Based on calculations from satellite photos, more than 30% of the habitat of the Colombian Black Spider Monkeys along the Pacific coast in Colombia has been lost in the past ten years. Ground-truthing of these data found that only 2:5% of viable secondary forest is left in this region. In Panama, there is a lower human population and likely higher habitat availability, but more research is needed to determine the status of the Brown-headed Spider Monkey and the threats to its populations. Its habitats are entirely fragmented in the southern part of it distribution, and there are only two known locations where it occurs in the Choco region in Colombia (Las Orquideas and Los Katios national natural parks). It may also occur in Chagres and Darién national parks in Panama. Parks such as Los Katios and Las Orquideas are believed to have very few spider monkeys because of indigenous hunting, and the density may be decreasing in Los Katios.

Bibliography. Cuarén, Shedden et al. (2008), Cueva & Pozo (2010), Defler (2003b, 2004), Eisenberg (1973, 1976), Gavilanez-Endara (2006), Heltne & Kunkel (1975), Hernandez-Camacho & Cooper (1976), Isler (2004), Kellogg & Goldman (1944), Madden & Albuja (1989), Magnusson (2006), Medeiros et al. (1997), Peck et al. (2011), Rosero (2010), Rossan & Baerg (1977), Rylands et al. (2006), Tirira (2001, 2004, 2007), de la Torre (2000).

Figures

On following pages 14 Brown-headed Spıder Monkey (Ateles fuscıceps) 15 Black Spider Monkey (Areias chamekl. 16 Red-faced Black Spıder Monkey (Areias paniscus) 17 Whne-wmskered Spodev Monkey (Areias margmatus) 18 Whıtebellıed Spıdeı Monkey (Areias belzeburh), 19 Vanegated Spıder Monkey (Areias hybndus)

Subspecies and Distribution. A. [. fusciceps Gray, 1866 — NW Ecuador , W of the Andes, historically in the provinces of Esmeraldas and Carchi, from the Colombian border S to the Cordillera de Colonche in the Guayas Province (most S record is in “Puente sobre el rio Chimbo,” Chimborazo Province), but today it is restricted to two remnant populations (Awa Ethnological Reserve N of the Rio Mira, and Cotacachi-Cayapas Ecological Reserve and adjacent Los Cedros Protected Forest and surrounding forests S of the Rio Mira). A. f. rufiventris Sclater, 1872 — E Panama (Atlantic slope) and W Colombia from the Uraba region in NW Antioquia, N through Cordoba, Sucre, and N Bolivar departments (N distributional limit on the S bank of the Canal del Dique, Cartagena), W of the Rio Cauca to the coast, E to the lower Rio Cauca along the W bank to SC Antioquia (the Cerro Pirre or the Rio Tucuti marks the border with A. geoffroyi grisescens), and S to the Cordillera Occidental of the Andes in SW Colombia (the most southerly record is Barabacoas, Narino Department).