Fun facts about the
TITI MONKEY
(Saimiri oerstedii cilrineullus)
Did you know that:
- The Titi is the smallest of the four primates found in Costa Rica.
The other three are:
Mono Carablanca (Capuchin)
Mono Congo (Howlers)
Mono Arana (Spider Monkey)
- Titi monkeys spend most of their time in the canopy level of tropical rainforest trees.
- Adults weigh between .5 and 1.1 kg and are about 75 cm long. Their tails measure 40 centimeters.
- Titi monkeys use their long tail for balance and warmth, NOT as an extra limb.
- The average lifespan of a Titi monkey is about 25 years.
- Titis make a variety of calls including trills, twitters and chucks, and sometimes louder yaps and squeals.
- Mono Titis typically eat seeds, leaves, eggs, nuts, fruit, insects and lizards. They SHOULD NOT eat bananas, which are not native to Costa Rica.
- Titi monkeys normally travel in groups ranging in size from 10 -35.
- Female Mono Titis give birth to only one infant at a time.
- Foraging titi troops are usually followed by several species of birds that feed on insects that are flushed out of the trees as the titis move through the canopy.
- Mono Titis are frequently electrocuted trying to cross power lines in an effort to pass between fragmented sections of rainforest.
- The Mono Titi is listed a critically endangered on the United Nation’s Red List since 1997.
- There are only 1200-1500 Titi monkeys left in the Manuel Antonio area, their only known habitat.
- PLEASE don’t feed the monkeys or any other wild animal. Human food and germs are harmful to these creatures.
