Colombian spider monkey

{{Short description|Subspecies of New World monkey}}

{{Subspeciesbox

| name = Colombian spider monkey{{MSW3 Groves|id=12100398}}

| image = Colombian Black Spider Monkey (3209802292).jpg

| image_caption =

| status = VU

| status_system = IUCN3.1

| status_ref = {{cite iucn|author1= Link, A.|author2= Cortes-Ortíz, L.|author3= Defler, T.R.|author4= Guzmàn-Caro, D.|author5= Méndez-Carvajal, P.|author6= Rodríguez, V.|author7= Shanee, S.|year= 2020|page= e.T39921A17979836 |title= Ateles fusciceps ssp. rufiventris|access-date=17 August 2020}}

| genus = Ateles

| species = fusciceps

| species_link = Black-headed spider monkey

| subspecies = rufiventris

| authority = (Sclater, 1872)

| synonyms =

• dariensis Goldman, 1915
• robustus J. A. Allen, 1914

}}

The Colombian spider monkey (Ateles fusciceps rufiventris) is a subspecies of the Black-headed spider monkey, a type of New World monkey, found in Colombia and Panama.{{cite book|title=New Perspectives in the Study of Mesoamerican Primates|chapter=Taxonomy and Distributions of Mesoamerican Primates|author1=Rylands, A. |author2=Groves, C. |author3=Mittermeier, R. |author4=Cortes-Ortiz, L. |author5=Hines, J. |name-list-style=amp |year=2006|pages=56–66|isbn=0-387-25854-X}} Some authorities, such as Froelich (1991), Collins and Dubach (2001) and Nieves (2005), do not recognize the Black-headed spider monkey as a distinct species and so treat the Colombian spider monkey as a subspecies of Geoffroy's spider monkey.{{cite book|title=Spider Monkeys|url=https://archive.org/details/spidermonkeysbio00camp_528|url-access=limited|editor=Campbell, C.|chapter=The taxonomic status of spider monkeys in the twenty-first century|author=Collins, A.|year=2008|pages=[https://archive.org/details/spidermonkeysbio00camp_528/page/n60 50]–67|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-86750-4}}

The Colombian spider monkey lives in dry forests, humid forests and cloud forests, and can live up to {{convert|2000|to|2500|m|ft}} above sea level. It is entirely black with some white on its chin while the Brown-headed spider monkey (A. f. fusciceps) has a black or brown body and a brown head.

The spider monkey has a black body and long limbs with thumb-less hands. It has a prehensile and extremely flexible tail, which acts as an extra limb. The tail has a hairless patch on the tip that is used for grip. This hairless patch is unique in its markings, just like the human fingerprint. Colombian spider monkeys can weigh up to 9.1 kg (20 pounds). Fruit makes up eighty percent of the spider monkey's diet, which also includes leaves, nuts, seeds, bark, insects, and flowers. Spider monkeys contribute to the dispersion of undigested seeds from the fruits they eat.{{Citation needed|date=October 2010}} This monkey lives approximately 24 years.

Spider monkeys are found in social groups of up to 30 individuals; however, they are usually broken up into smaller foraging groups of 3-4 individuals. They move and climb through the forest by hand over hand (brachiation) motion.

File:At Chester Zoo 2023 065.jpg]]