Hamadryas Baboon
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| Papio hamadryas (Linnaeus, 1758) |
The Hamadryas Baboon (Papio hamadryas) is a baboon from the Old World monkey family. It is the northernmost of all the baboons; its range extends from the Red Sea in Egypt to Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia. It also lives on the Arabian peninsula, though it is uncertain if this population was introduced by humans or not. The Hamadryas Baboon was a sacred animal to the ancient Egyptians as the attendant of Thoth, and so, is also called the Sacred Baboon.
Apart from the striking size difference between the sexes (males are often twice as large as females) which is common to all baboons, this species also shows sexual dimorphism in coloration. Males are silver-white colored and have a pronounced mane, while the females are maneless and brown. The face is colored red.
The Hamadryas Baboon lives in semi-desert areas, savannahs and rocky areas, requiring cliffs for sleeping and possibilities to drink water. It lives together in groups (so-called Harems) of Alpha males and up to 15 females which the males lead and guard. Two to three groups unite repeatedly to form federations.
The Hamadryas Baboon is omnivorous and is adapted to its relatively dry habitat. It is not discriminating in its search for food, eating anything from grasses and roots to insects and vertebrates.
The loss of its habitat by transformation in field and pastureland represents the main threat of the Hamadryas Baboon, its natural enemies (leopards and lions) having been nearly exterminated in their range. IUCN lists it as near threatened.
[edit] References
- Primate Specialist Group (1996). Papio hamadryas. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 11 May 2006.
- Groves, Colin (16 November 2005). Wilson, D. E., and Reeder, D. M. (eds): Mammal Species of the World, 3rd edition, Johns Hopkins University Press, 166-167. ISBN 0-801-88221-4.
