Chiropoles albinasus (I. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire & Deville, 1848)

Russell A. Mittermeier, Anthony B. Rylands & Don E. Wilson, 2013, Phitheciidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 3 Primates, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 432-483 : 479

37.

Red-nosed Bearded Saki

Chiropoles albinasus

French: Saki a nez blanc / German: \WeiRnasensaki / Spanish: Saki barbudo de nariz blanca

Other common names: Red-nosed Saki, White-nosed Bearded Saki, White-nosed Saki

Taxonomy. Pithecia albinasa I. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire & Deville, 1848 ,

Brazil, Para, Santarém, lower Rio Tapajos.

This species is monotypic.

Distribution. C Brazil (S of the Rio Amazonas in the states of Amazonas, Para, Rondonia, and Mato Grosso), from the Rio Madeira in the W and the Rio Xingu in the E, to the rainforest-cerrado ecotone; it is absent from the Ji-Parana-Mamoré interfluvium (between the Madeira, Ji-Parana, Mamoré, and the Serra dos Pacaas Novos in the S), and from areas of terra firma forest S of Serra dos Pacaas Novos.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 39-46 cm (males) and 36-51 cm (females), tail 36— 45 cm (males) and 36-48 cm (females); weight 2.7-3.7 kg (males) and 2.2-2.8 kg (females). Skin of nose and lips of the Red-nosed Bearded Saki are bright red, but given that it was described from a museum specimen,it was wrongly believed to have a white nose. Coatis nearly uniformly blackish and thick. Both sexes have coronal tufts and beards, which are more developed in males. Tail is long, full, and shaggy. The Red-nosed Bearded Saki has a conspicuous subtriangular reddish-pink rostral patch, covered by a few short, stiff, whitish, or yellowish hairs that extend from between eyes to lips. Males have a bright pink scrotum.

Habitat. Mainly tall terra firma forest but also seasonally flooded forest, forest fragments, and transitional, savanna-like forest. Red-nosed Bearded Sakis prefer the middle and upper layers of the forest canopy. They tend to be restricted to undisturbed habitats. Permanency in forest fragments smaller than 100 ha is possible by a combination of crucial ecological factors, such as presence of key resources and absent or reduced hunting pressure.

Food and Feeding. The Red-nosed Bearded Sakiis highly frugivorous, with a specialization for seeds. Fruits and parts offruits account for as much as 90% of the diet. J. M. Ayres carried out the first field study on Red-nosed Bearded Sakis in Aripuana, Mato Grosso. Individuals were difficult to habituate due to intense hunting, so four different groups were followed for no more than 4 hours/day. Diets of different groups consisted of mature fruit (54%), immature seeds (36%), and flowers (3%), along with small amounts of petioles, leaves, and bark. Immature seeds were consumed more often in the dry season. Ayres recorded 51 plant species from 20 families in the diet (n = 128 feeding bouts). The top five most exploited plant species were Astrocaryum vulgare ( Arecaceae ), Caryocar villosum ( Caryocaraceae ), Goupia glabra ( Celastraceae ), Pouteria sp. (Sapotaceae) , and Onychopetalum amazonicum ( Annonaceae ). The highest ranked families were Arecaceae , Sapotaceae , and Fabaceae . In Tapajos National Forest, the feeding ecology of a habituated group with 56 individuals was studied by L. Pinto for 38 complete observation days during eleven months. Immature seeds were consumed most often (48%), followed by ripe fruit pulp (39%), mature seeds (6%), flowers (5%), and small quantities of immature pulp, invertebrates, and other dietary items. The study group fed on 125 plant species from 38 families (n = 5197 feeding records). Brosimum parinarioides ( Moraceae ) was the most used food source (9-5% of records) and had a high selectivity index. Pouteria bilocularis ( Sapotaceae ), Moutabea guianensis ( Polygalaceae ), Couratari stellata ( Lecythidaceae ), and Goupia glabra ( Celastraceae ) were the next four most important food sources. The three most important families were Sapotaceae , Lecythidaceae , and Moraceae . Food resource heterogeneity in space and time influenced feeding ecology of Red-nosed Bearded Sakis; they preferred more productive plant species and adjusted their foraging patterns relative to food availability.

Breeding. Ayres suggested that groups of Red-nosed Bearded Sakis were made up of unimale subgroups, but the mating system is not yet well understood. Copulation takes place on large horizontal branches and lasts 20-50 seconds. Average gestation in captivity is ¢.150 days, and the nursing period is ¢.3 months. In Aripuana, there were two birth peaks: February (wet season) and August-September (dry season). At Tapajos, mating and births occurred throughout the year.

Activity patterns. Red-nosed Bearded Sakis are diurnal and arboreal. In Tapajos National Forest, groups usually wake before dawn and retire to sleeping sites at or after dusk, being active, on average, for twelve hours and 20 minutes each day. Groups chose tall trees to sleep in, changing sleeping sites each night. Most of the timeis spent traveling (36%), followed by diurnal resting (27%), and feeding (24%). About 13% of the day is spent playing, vocalizing, grooming, and engaging in other social activities. Time spent traveling is correlated positively with daily average group size.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. Red-nosed Bearded Sakis live in multimale-multifemale groups of up to 56 individuals, showing a fission-fusion dynamic in which group members split into subgroups of different sizes. At Aripuana, groups had 19-26 individuals that were never separated by more than a few meters. Red-nosed Bearded Sakis there associated with other primates 29% of the time, including Guianan Brown Capuchins (Sapajus apella), Humboldt’'s Woolly Monkeys ( Lagothrix lagothricha), Guianan Squirrel Monkeys (Saimiri sciureus), Humboldt’s White-fronted Capuchins (Cebus albifrons), and Monk Sakis ( P. monachus ). In Tapajos National Forest, the group of up to 56 individuals subdivided into subgroups ofvariable sizes that would remain apart for some hours or up to several days. No clear relationship was found between grouping patterns and the distribution of resources. There, Red-nosed Bearded Sakis form temporary associations with Guianan Brown Capuchins, Guianan Squirrel Monkeys, and White-whiskered Spider Monkeys ( Ateles marginatus). These associations lasted a few minutes to more than a day. Daily movement in Tapajos was 1840-7809 m (average 3667 m). At Aripuana, daily movements were 2500-5000 m, and daily distances traveled were greater in the dry season when ripe fruit was scarce. Home ranges in Aripuana were 200-350 ha, whereas in Tapajos, they exceeded 1000 ha—the largest home range recorded for the genus and one of the largest recorded for a Neotropical primate. Population surveys have provided sighting rates of 0-06 groups/10 km on the Santarém-Cuiaba Highway to 1-8 groups/10 km in Amazonia National Park.

Status and Conservation. CITES Appendix I. Classified as Endangered on The [UCN Red List. The endangered status of the Red-nosed Bearded Sakis is due to a projected decline of at least 50% during the next 30 years. Major reasons for the projected decline are the expanding agricultural frontier in its distribution, and hunting. Red-nosed Bearded Sakis are hunted for food and occasionally for their tail (used as dusters). A large part of the distribution of the Red-nosed Bearded Saki has been deforested or fragmented by logging, cattle ranching, and agricultural monocultures. Paving of the Trans-Amazon and Santarém-Cuiaba highways has accelerated the rate of degradation and forest loss by facilitating access to previously remote areas. Other infrastructure projects planned or underway are hydroelectric reservoirs on the rios Teles Pires,Juruena, Tapajos,Jamanxim, and Madeira, which also contribute to habitat loss and an increase in human populations. Red-nosed Bearded Sakis occur in Amazonia and Jamanxim national parks and Tapajos, Crepori, Trairao, Itaituba I, Itaituba II, and Jamanxim national forests.

Bibliography. Ayres (1981, 1989), Branch (1983), da Cruz Lima (1945), Ferrari (1995), Ferrari, Iwanaga, Coutinho et al. (1999), Ferrari, Iwanaga, Ravetta et al. (2003), Groves (2001), Hershkovitz (1985), Hick (1968), Norconk (2011), Pimenta & Silva (2005), Pinto, L.M. et al. (2013), Pinto, L.P. (2008), Setz et al. (2013), Silva & Figueiredo (2002), Silva et al. (2013), van Roosmalen et al. (1981), Veiga, Pinto et al. (2008), Wallace et al. (1996).

Figures

On following pages: 39. Rio Negro Bearded Saki (Chiropotes chiropotes); 40. Uta Hick's Bearded Saki (Chiropotes utahickae); 41. Guianan Bearded Saki (Chiropotes sagulatus); 42. Bald Uacari (Cacajao calvus): 43. Black- headed Uacari (Cacajao melanocephalus); 44. Spix's Black-headed Uacari (Cacajao ouakary).

Distribution. C Brazil (S of the Rio Amazonas in the states of Amazonas, Para, Rondonia, and Mato Grosso), from the Rio Madeira in the W and the Rio Xingu in the E, to the rainforest-cerrado ecotone; it is absent from the Ji-Parana-Mamoré interfluvium (between the Madeira, Ji-Parana, Mamoré, and the Serra dos Pacaas Novos in the S), and from areas of terra firma forest S of Serra dos Pacaas Novos.