Cebus albifrons (Humboldt, 1812)
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publication ID |
https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.6628559 |
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DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6628620 |
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persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/560F8786-B737-2844-0DFD-FC143EEEF726 |
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treatment provided by |
Jonas |
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scientific name |
Cebus albifrons |
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Humboldt’s White-fronted Capuchin
French: Sapajou a front blanc / German: Weilstirn-Kapuzineraffe / Spanish: Capuchino de frente blanca
Other common names: \ White-fronted Capuchin
Taxonomy. Simia albifrons Humboldt, 1812 ,
Venezuela, forests near Santa Barbara and the cataracts of the Rio Orinoco, Amazonas.
C. albifrons as used here is a poorly defined species. It is known for sure only from a small region around the type locality, but P. Hershkovitz’s review in 1949 indicated that all white-fronted capuchins should be classified as its subspecies, including the form wunicolor believed by him to occupy the majority of the Amazonian distribution of C. albifrons , both north and south of the Amazon River. There is no holotype specimen; the original description is believed to have been based on a pet seen in a hut. A review by T. Defler and J. Hernandez Camacho in 2002 designated a neotype and argued that unicolor was ajunior synonym. The molecular genetic study byJ. Boubli and colleagues in 2012, however, showed that white-fronted capuchins south of the Amazon were quite distinct from those to the north. The form unicolor was accordingly resurrected for the gracile/untufted capuchins to the south of the river, and those to the north, by default, continue to be called albifrons . Nevertheless, the strong possibility remains that there are more taxa of gracile capuchins north of the Amazon (and to the south), which have yet to be identified. Intermediates between C. albifrons and C. capucinus occur in the middle San Jorge Valley, lower Rio Cauca, Colombia. Monotypic.
Distribution. Wide ranging in the upper Amazon Basin of S Venezuela (Federal Terrritory of Amazonas), S & E Colombia (Colombian Amazon region, N of the rios Amazonas and Ica-Putumayo, and patchily occurring in the E lowlands W of the Orinoco, N as far as the lower Rio Meta), and NW Brazil (N of the Solimoes, W from the rios Negro and Branco, as far N as the Rio Uraricoera); it would seem that it is absent in the Colombian Amazon Basin from the middle and upper rios Meta and Vichada and from the N bank of the upper Rio Guaviare. View Figure
Descriptive notes. Head-body 37-5 cm (males) and 36.5-37.5 cm (females), tail 42-5 cm (males) and 41-46 cm (females) for specimens from the rios Negro and Cassiquiare. Measurements of two young males, designated and described as the neotype and topotype by T. Defler and J. Hernandez-Camacho in 1992 were: neotype headbody 38-5 cm,tail 43 cm, weight 2-6 kg, and topotype head—body 36-5 cm, tail 42-5 cm, weight 2-1 kg. An adult female topotype: head-body 33-8 cm, tail 41-2 cm; and weight 2-3 kg. The body of Humboldt’s White-fronted Capuchin is overall a pale grayishbrown, darker on limbs. Hands and feet are a yellowish brown. The tail is ashy above, whitish below, and brownish black toward the tip. The frontis creamy, and there is a cap of short dark fur on the crown that is rounded in the front and well demarcated from the light forehead. The face is naked and pink.
Habitat. Primary and some secondary deciduous, gallery, mangrove, and flooded forest, as well as high-elevation forest to 2000 m. Humboldt’s White-fronted Capuchin seems to prefer less disturbed, moister forest than other capuchins. It occupies semideciduous forest patches, seasonally inundated forests, and gallery forest in the Eastern Llanos of Colombia in the northern part ofits distribution. The Guianan Brown Capuchin ( Sapajus apella ) is also found in this region, but the two are generally parapatric. Much of the distribution of Humboldt’s White-fronted Capuchin covers the sclerophytic, small-leaved, white-sand forests (“caatinga alta” or “campinarana”) and scrub (“caatinga baixa” or “campina”) typical of the Rio Negro Basin, butit is not known to what extent they occupy them. T. Defler studied a population in El Tuparro National Natural Park, south of the Rio Tomo (tributary of the Rio Orinoco) in the Eastern Llanos of Colombia. There were distinct seasons: a wet season in May—-October when low-lying savannas and gallery forest were extensively flooded and a dry season in November-April. Semi-deciduous forests, 20-25 m high, on granitic hills with shallow and gravelly soils did not flood. Annual rainfall was ¢.2100 mm.
Food and Feeding. At El Tuparro National Natural Park, Humboldt’s White-fronted Capuchins spent 80% oftheir feeding time eating fruits, nuts, seeds, leaves, stems, and flowers and 20% eating animal prey, including insects (adults, larva, and pupae), spiders and other invertebrates,tree frogs,lizards, and honey of melipone bees. Crowns are favored sites for foraging for animal prey. Palms ( Arecaceae ) are an abundant important food source for Humboldt’s White-fronted Capuchins. They eat mesocarp and endosperm offruits ofsix species including Attalea regia, Jessenia polycarpa, Mauritia [flexuosa, Syagrus orinocensis, and Bactris . Other species supplying fruits include Oxandra espintana ( Annonaceae ), Goupia glabra ( Goupiaceae ), Ficus (Moracae) , Passiflora (Passifloraceae) , Inga and Dipteryx (Fabaceae) . The group at El Tuparro often traveled and foraged on the ground, picking up fallen fruits, eating fruits of terrestrial bromeliads (Ananas comosus, Bromelia), and foraging for insects in leaflitter. They used well worn trails on the ground to travel between forest patches. Humboldt’s White-fronted Capuchins drink water from tree holes, reservoirs in the tightly packed foliage of Phenakospermum (Strelitziaceae) , and pools on the ground.
Breeding. Female Humboldt’s White-fronted Capuchins have a 16-20day reproductive cycle. Breeding occurs throughout the year, but in the highly seasonal Llanos, there is a birth peak in the late dry and early wet season. A female gives birth to a single young after gestation of 162-180 days. Males share in the care of offspring. Individuals have been known to live for up to 44 years.
Activity patterns. Humboldt’s White-fronted Capuchins become active a little after 05:00 h. They feed and forage until midday when they rest for 1-3 hours. When foraging for animal prey, a group can be spread over an area 250 m wide. In the afternoon, they resume foraging until 16:00-16:30 h when they return to a sleeping site and rest, play, and groom until they enter sleeping trees a little before dusk. They sleep in crowns of Attalea regia palms, 25-30 m above the ground.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. The group of Humboldt’s Whitefronted Capuchins studied by Defler numbered 35 individuals, with four adult males, ten adult females, along with subadults and juveniles. Its home range was 110-120 ha, and it traveled 4-5 km each day. About 20% of the home range overlapped with that of another group. Group interactions are tense and aggressive. The males give “yah” vocalizations and chase the males in the opposing group. Males form a dominance hierarchy, and the alpha male is the most vigilant and active in defending the group against predators and other groups. Males are very tolerant of infants and juveniles, often carrying them and rescuing them in situations of alarm. Predators include the black-and-white hawk eagle (Spizastur melanoleucus), the ornate hawk-eagle (Spizaetus ornatus), and the Tayra (Eira barbara). A harpy eagle (Harpia harpyja) was seen taking a Humboldt’s White-fronted Capuchin in Jat National Park, Brazil. Population surveys in three terra firma forests of south-eastern Colombia in the basins of the rios Apaporis and Caqueta, where hunting is minimal or entirely lacking, suggested naturally low densities of 0-02-0-4 groups/km? and 1:8-3-6 ind/km?.
Status and Conservation. CITES Appendix II. Classified as Least Concern on The [UCN Red List. Humboldt’s White-fronted Capuchin is hunted, butit is widespread and occurs in numerous large protected areas in the Venezuelan, Colombian, and Brazilian Amazon Basin. Much ofits distribution is in the western part of the Guiana Shield, with typically nutrient poor soils and forest, including large expanses of white-sand forests and scrub in the Rio Negro Basin. It occurs in numerous protected areas includingJaa and Pico da Neblina national parks in Brazil; Amacayacu, Cahuinari, El Tuparro, La Paya, Serrania de Chiribiquete, and Sierra de la Macarena national natural parks and Nukak and Puinawai national natural reserves in Colombia; and Jaua-Sarisarinama, Parima Tapirapeco, Serrania de la Neblina, and Yapacana national parks in Venezuela.
Bibliography. Barnett et al. (2011), Defler (1979a, 1979b, 1980, 1982, 1985, 2003b, 2004), Defler & Hernandez-Camacho (2002), Freese & Oppenheimer (1981), Hernandez-Camacho & Cooper (1976), Hershkovitz (1949), Palacios & Peres (2005).
No known copyright restrictions apply. See Agosti, D., Egloff, W., 2009. Taxonomic information exchange and copyright: the Plazi approach. BMC Research Notes 2009, 2:53 for further explanation.
