What Monkeys Have Died In Hong Kong Zoo?

Nine monkeys were found dead within a short time at the Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens. Speculating over the cause of death before the necropsy report is released is never a good idea. Now how about I share some of my knowledge and experience about these monkeys?

De Brazza’s monkey (Cercopithecus neglectus) is the largest and the only Old World monkey among the four species. It is an African species while the rest are South American. I have seen quite a number of them in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, and Kenya. It is a common species that can also be found in other central African countries nearby. With that being said, finding them in the wild is not the easiest due to their secretive lifestyle in some of the densest forests.

White-faced saki (Pithecia pithecia) is another New World monkey from the rainforests of South America. I have seen them in Brazil. This is the most terrestrial species despite the fact that all four species here are arboreal. White-faced sakis are terrestrial when foraging so they have more predators than the other species, from birds of prey like harpy eagles, reptiles like anacondas and boa constrictor, to felids like ocelots, jaguars, and pumas.

Common squirrel monkey (Saimiriinae saimiri) is the second smallest species here. Adult females weigh less than 750 grams and males usually weigh no more than 1,000 grams. It is a typical rainforest primate. I have seen many of them in Brazil, Peru, and Ecuador. They can also be found in the rest of the Amazon Basin. This is the most polygamous species of the four, while the rest are typically monogamous.

Cotton-top tamarin (Saguinus oedipus) is the most precious species of all the monkeys found dead, and we have lost three of them. With a wild population of less than 2,000 adults, it is easiest listed as critically endangered, while the other three species are all listed as least concern. It is also the smallest of the four with adults usually weighing less than 500 grams. I have only seen a few of them in Colombia.

Why are cotton-top tamarins critically endangered?

Other than the well-known reasons such as deforestation and illegal pet trade, there is a surprising factor that has driven this species into the brink of extinction: scientific research. The cotton-top tamarin is a non-human primate known for susceptibility to juvenile-onset colitis and subsequent colon cancer. As high as 80% of individuals in captivity are prone to colitis, which is linked to an increased risk of a certain type of colon cancer. Up to 40,000 individuals were caught and exported for biomedical studies.


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