Conservation Status: LEAST CONCERN
Common Name:Crab-eating macaque, Balinese macaque
Scientific Name: Macaca fascicularis
Type: Mammal
Diet: insects, small reptiles, fish, crabs
Length: 38 – 55 cm
Weight: 5 – 9 kg
The crab-eating macaques, also known as the Balinese macaques, are monkeys that inhabit the Ubud Monkey Forest in Bali.
These macaques have greyish-white fur covering their body and small patches of yellow fur cover the top of their heads and shoulders. They are opportunistic omnivores and have tails longer than their bodies.
In the Ubud Monkey Forest, these macaques live in five different groups, with each group occupying a different area in the forest. Unlike the crab-eating macaques living in other regions, the macaques in the Monkey Forest get their food from the forest staffs and tourists, which makes it possible to see obese Balinese macaques.
Outside of the forest, these macaques, however, are not viewed as sacred. In fact, they are considered an invasive species in places such as Hong-Kong and western New Guinea as they harm the local biodiversity.
References:
- Ong, P. & Richardson, M. (2008). “Macaca fuscicularis“. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2008. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 4 January 2009.
- “Macaca Fascicularis (Nicobar Crab-Eating Macaque, Nicobar Cynomolgus Monkey, Nicobar Long-Tailed Macaque)”. Iucnredlist.Org, http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/12551/0.
Animals in South-East Asia 