Black Fronted Titi Monkey

The black-fronted titi monkey (Callicebus nigrifrons) is a species of titi, a type of New World monkey.

The black-fronted titi is a small diurnal primate.^[3] The body of this primate is covered in grey to brown fur with black fur concentrated around the face, the tail is slightly orange in color.^[4][5] Body weight ranges from 1 to 2 kilograms and the head-body length is around 270 to 450 millimeters.^[4] This species does not exhibit sexual dimorphism.^[5] Members of this species can live up to 12 years of age in captivity.^[6]

Habitat and distribution

The black-fronted titi is endemic to the Atlantic forest region of Brazil ^[7][8][4] and has a home range averaging 20 hectares.^[8] The black-fronted titi is arboreal and prefers the middle to upper canopy of the forest.^[5] However, it will move to the forest floor at times to forage, travel, and play.^[9] Play behavior on the forest floor has been documented between black-fronted titis and marmosets in Brazil.^[10]

Ecology

Diet

The diet of the black-fronted titi is frugivorous and they forage in dense vegetation.^[5] They are also known to eat leaves, seeds, invertebrates, and flowers.^[7][11][8] Due to their highly frugivorous diet, they play a key role in seed dispersion.^[12]

Predation

Predators of the black-fronted titi include the harpy eagle, owls, hawks, falcons, tayra, jaguarundi, ocelot, margay, oncilla, pumas, jaguars, large snakes, and other, larger primates (such as howler monkeys).^[5][3] Black-fronted titis are particularly vulnerable to harpy eagle attacks when they move to the upper portion of the canopy to sunbathe on cold mornings.^[5] After detecting a raptor, black-fronted titis alert the surrounding area quickly through alarm calls before hiding.^[5]

Behaviour

Black-fronted titi pair

The black-fronted titi is socially monogamous^[13][5][4] and is typically found in a group of two to six individuals, which includes the adult pair and their offspring.^[9][4] Females give birth to one offspring per year, usually in July or August.^[14] Parental care and social activities with the offspring are carried out by the male of this species, while the female only provides milk.^[14] Both males and females disperse from their natal group at three years of age.^[9]

The black-fronted titi is territorial and will defend territories, food resources, and mates with loud calls individually or in duets or choruses.^[8][9] Loud calls are used for within and between group communication and have a high amplitude and a low frequency which allows them to be heard over long distances.^[15] Loud calls are broadcast at dawn and when titis see or hear another group.^[8] When confronted by a predator, duets and choruses can last up to two hours, with group members alternating between soft and loud calls.^[16] There are no sex differences in calling behavior during predator interactions, both males and females will call.^[5] The black-fronted titi can produce calls which encode the predator type (aerial or terrestrial) and predator location to nearby conspecifics.^[17]

Characteristic of the Callicebinae subfamily, black-fronted titis can be observed with interwoven tails, a behavior thought to reinforce pair bonds and strengthen social relationships.^[18][19][20]

Conservation

The black-fronted titi is classified as near threatened by the IUCN due to extensive habitat loss, forest fragmentation, and an estimated population decline of more than 20% in the past 24 years.^[9] Small, isolated populations are common due to fragmentation and in some areas this has led to the species going locally extinct.^[4] Noise pollution can also negatively impact this species. One study found that noise from mining operations restricted the black-fronted titis long distance communication due to the overlap in frequency between mining noise and loud calls, this is significant for a species that relies heavily on vocal communication in social interactions.^[8]

References

Wikispecies has information related to Black-fronted Titi.