What kind of monkeys live in India? Animals of India - sacred and ordinary
Russians purchasing tours to India should be very careful while on the streets of Indian cities. Tourists are rarely threatened by local residents or even criminals; the police treat tourists more than kindly. In large Indian cities there are even special police departments that deal with all issues and problems of tourists.
The worst threat on the streets of Indian cities is macaques. It’s scary to imagine, but in Delhi alone there are more than 10 thousand of them, although of course, the number of street robbers is difficult to accurately determine, because they multiply quite quickly.
Monkeys in India are a sacred animal, and therefore beating, much less killing, them is strictly prohibited, both for local residents and law enforcement officers. According to Indian beliefs, the macaque is the earthly representative of the deity Hanuman, who is quite revered among Hindus. Moreover, Hindu traditions require treating all sacred animals on Tuesday and Saturday. Which, naturally, Indians do regularly. As a result, monkeys feel more than at ease on the streets of Indian cities.
Despite all the tricks of the tailed robbers, it is useless to complain about them, since the police do not react to their antics, and there are simply no other services in India that deal specifically with monkeys. Fully aware of their impunity, the monkeys are creating real “mayhem” on the streets of Delhi.
Monkeys are primarily interested in food supplies. Therefore, when they see something of interest to the monkeys in the hands of the townspeople, they do not hesitate to attack even people. As a result, the monkeys literally snatch packages, bags and other things from the hands of local residents. Moreover, attacks are rarely limited to the theft of food supplies, because they still need to be reached. And the teeth of Indian macaques are quite sharp. That’s why bags or other things torn to shreds are not uncommon.
Monkeys pay no less attention to bright and shiny objects. Therefore, mirrors and photographic equipment should be used carefully so as not to attract the attention of four-legged primates.
Reports of incidents involving monkeys appear almost regularly. One of the most striking examples of the outrages perpetrated by monkeys was the destruction and disruption wedding ceremony. An Indian wedding is always accompanied by colorful costumes and a wild feast. Similar activity on one of the streets of Delhi attracted the attention of a whole troop of monkeys. As a result, food supplies were practically destroyed, clothes were torn, and the wedding was disrupted, and some guests needed health care, since wounds caused by the teeth and claws of monkeys can be dangerous.
Interestingly, almost everyone suffers from the monkey invasion - government and public institutions, police officers, local residents, as well as tourists. Therefore, while on the streets of an Indian city, you should not once again attract the attention of four-legged animals. And when coming into contact with them, you should be quite careful, as their bites are very unpleasant and painful.
India is a country located in the southern part of Asia, most of it is located on the Hindustan Peninsula. This state washes Indian Ocean, namely its Bay of Bengal and Arabian Bay.
Fauna of India
This country is home to many species of mammals, birds, insects and reptiles. Animal world India is very diverse. The most common fauna here are camels, monkeys, elephants, cows, and snakes.
Camel
These are the most common animals in India, they are mainly used for transporting goods, as well as for riding, in ancient times they even took part in battles.
There are two types of this animal - dromedary and bactrian, that is, one-humped and two-humped. Camels are herbivores. They are able to feed on those desert plants that are not eaten by any other animals. This, for example, An adult animal weighs about 500-800 kilograms, and it lives for 30-50 years. The camel body is very well adapted to survive in the desert. Thanks to the specific shape of red blood cells, a camel can drink an impressive amount of water at one time - 60-100 liters. Thus, the animal makes a supply of fluid, which can last for two weeks. When the camel for a long time does without water, its body gets it by burning fats, and the animal can lose most of its weight. In India, the milk of this animal is often consumed. It has a number beneficial properties: it contains vitamins C and D, microelements (calcium, magnesium, iron and others). One more positive property The benefit of this product is that it contains very little casein, which makes milk difficult to digest.
Indian elephant
Elephants are also very common animals in India. In addition to the animal that lives in given state and bearing the corresponding name, there is also another species of elephant - the African one. The Indian differs from it in that it has smaller ears and is smaller in size than the African. Another interesting thing is that both males and females have tusks, while in Indians only males have tusks. These animals are the largest land animals (they are surpassed in size only but they live in the ocean). Elephants are used as a means of transportation in the jungle. In India, these animals are very popular because of their docile nature. In addition, elephants often participate in religious celebrations.
Monkey
These are very common animals in India. Species such as macaques, langurs and others live here. Many even live in big cities.
King of Beasts - Indian Tiger
Now there are only 3,200 individuals of this species left on the territory of this state. Many of them live in mangrove forests. Previously, these animals often attacked people, so they were exterminated in large quantities, but hunting tigers is not easy.
What kind of snakes live in India?
On the territory of this state lives on Earth - King Cobra. However, people very rarely suffer from its bites, since it lives far in the forests, hunting small animals there. Much more dangerous to humans are sand faff. The first reaches 1.5-2 meters in length, has a rich yellow color and a dark pattern on the head, which is somewhat reminiscent of glasses, hence the name. The second belongs to the same family with vipers. Its length is small - about 70 centimeters. It's a snake Brown with a zigzag pattern on the sides.
Peacock
Many people associate these birds with Indian culture. They are often found not only in the mythology of a given country, but also in Persian and Islamic legends. Even in Christianity there is a mention of the peacock - it is a symbol of life. This bird is very common in Indian art - both in literature, music, and painting. Peacocks are very common in this state; they live almost everywhere.
What animals are considered sacred in India?
First of all, these are cows. Since ancient times, these are sacred animals of India. They were considered as such in Ancient Egypt. In the mythology of this country, there is a belief that after death you can get to heaven if you swim across the river while holding on to the tail of a cow. This is also due to the fact that the milk of this animal is very often consumed as food. Therefore, the cow is considered a symbol of life.
Another sacred animal of India is elephants. They are considered a symbol of wisdom, kindness and prudence, and are often depicted in homes and on temples. There are also sacred animals of India, which are representatives of certain gods. These are, for example, monkeys - they are considered the incarnation of the god Hanuman, an ally of Rama. Also, in India they are rats. There is even a whole temple dedicated to them - thousands of these animals live there. There is a legend associated with them in India. According to her, Karni Mata was a Hindu saint, and when one of her children died, she began to pray to the god of death Yama to return her son to her, and he turned all her sons into rats. There is also a snake cult in India. According to ancient legends, these animals are the patrons of the waters of the valley. If we turn to mythology, we can find out that snakes are the sons of Kadru. In myths, these animals are described in human images, they are endowed with such traits as wisdom, beauty and strength. In addition, the peacock is also found in Indian mythology - Krishna’s headdress was decorated with its feathers. Temples dedicated to this god are painted with images of this bird.
In India, many representatives of the fauna are surrounded by an aura of holiness, for example, cows, snakes, crocodiles living in ponds or reservoirs near temples. The differences in these cases are due to local traditions. India has a special attitude towards monkeys. In this country they have long been revered thanks to their ancient mythical leader Hanuman. It was he who at one time tied a torch to his tail to illuminate the battlefield and help King Rama defeat the evil demon Ravana.
In northern India, the attitude towards monkeys that fill groves and take over entire villages is twofold. The importunity of these animals, caused by their curiosity and thievery, sometimes reaches extreme, sometimes funny, sometimes dramatic pranks. Therefore, in everyday life, the divine halo of monkeys often goes out. They are often abused and even beaten.
There are cases when voracious brown macaques, reaching the age of 18, raid apartments in the heart of New Delhi. It costs them nothing to climb to the upper floors of multi-story buildings and, taking advantage of the absence of the owners, to destroy all food supplies, including those stored in refrigerators. In Delhi, there are several millions of these creatures, which can be vengeful, capable at any moment of turning the lives of the inhabitants of entire city blocks into a living hell. They say that macaques are treated with fear by officials even in the Ministry of Defense, where they once visited and caused complete mayhem in the meeting room.
In the city of Naggar, in the Himalayan state of Himachal Pradesh, a troop of monkeys periodically devastates the famous orchard around the museum-estate of the Roerich family, eating all the fruits, even unripe ones. Frightened residents of this particular region decided that they had enough and “took up knives,” or rather scalpels, to sterilize the annoying male primates, having received the sanction of the Ministry of Health. The Delhi municipality followed the example of the Himachalis, which ordered the capture of these rapidly breeding mammals and export them to suburban reservations. However, this coercive measure has not yet led to the desired results. The monkey colony, accustomed to city comfort, is clearly not happy with the prospect of ending up in the jungle again.
Nothing is known about the exact number of monkeys living in Indian cities, but they can be seen almost everywhere, especially in areas dominated by Vaishnavism. Although macaques and their relatives are more large size denied the right to protection that sacred cows enjoy, monkeys in general live quite well, since many temples are dedicated to them. In one of the temple complexes in New Delhi, there is at least a twenty-meter statue in honor of the Hindu hero Hanuman. And this means that it is place of worship Numerous pilgrims visit the place and the monkeys always have something to eat and entertain themselves, for example, by posing for photographers or taking bananas from tourists.
Order - Primates / Suborder - Dry-nosed monkeys / Infraorder - Apes / Parvoorder - Narrow-nosed monkeys / Superfamily - Canine-headed monkeys / Family - Marmosets / Genus - Macaques
History of the study
Indian macaque, or bonnet macaque (lat. Macaca radiata) is one of the species of macaques.
The Indian macaque was identified as a separate species of its family, the marmosets, in the early 19th century, in 1812. However, until now, for more than two hundred years, there has been a debate about their further classification, since many believe that there are two more subspecies of these animals. However, no one can yet accurately determine and confirm the presence of such diversity, since even if there are other species, they live in very close connection with each other.
Spreading
Habitats of the species: mountainous rainforests India, sometimes go to cities.
Appearance
Adults, both male and female, have approximately the same height - from 40 to 60 cm. However, their sexual division can be distinguished differently external sign– proportionality of the tail. With the same body length, the length of their tails ranges from 55 cm (in females) to 70 cm (in males). The mass of primates of this species is small. So in females the weight is about five kilograms, and in males 7–8 kg.
The structure of the head of bonnet macaques has its own characteristics. They have a completely flat profile, and their skin is light brown. Also in its structure you can find cheek pouches, which is explained by their type of nutrition. As a rule, they store small plants and nuts in these compartments.
The color of the coat has a light brown tint and is almost uniform, as is its strong density.
Lifestyle
The ideal habitat for these animals is the tropical forests of India, which are located in mountainous areas. Slopes are most comfortable for these monkeys, which every now and then descend to the ground. They are diurnal animals and sleep at night on tree branches.
Indian macaques live in large flocks. Thus, on one branched tree located on a slope, a friendly family of up to 80 individuals can huddle.
The hierarchical system of relationships is based on maternal kinship. Young females remain in their native herd even after reaching sexual maturity, while males at this age are forced to leave the herd.
Nutrition
The macaque feeds on ripe fruits, leaves, insects, as well as crops on agricultural plantations - grains, rice, peanuts, coconuts and coffee beans.
Number
Thanks to such large communities, as well as the unpretentious nature of their habitat and animal protection measures in India, Indian bonnet macaques are not in danger of extinction in the near future.
People who are not initiated into Hindu beliefs are usually extremely surprised to see how at ease monkeys feel in Indian bazaars. They climb everywhere, steal fruits and other foodstuffs from the shelves, and no one drives them away - on the contrary, it seems that they are expected here as dear guests. Such honors are awarded to the Hindus living in India and Sri Lanka, the monkey hanuman langur (Semnopithecus entellus). Some of them destroy fields and gardens, while others, who live in temples, are brought food by local residents themselves.
Hindus have every reason to revere monkeys: according to their ideas, the monkey god Hanuman miraculously saved the wife of the god Rama, Sita, from the encroachments of the demon Ramana. Rama is one of the supreme Indian gods, and Hanuman was honored to be his associate. Hanuman is also considered the patron of the arts and healing.
This deity is worshiped by millions of Hindus and his images can be found in many Hindu homes. Temples are erected in honor of Hanuman - some pilgrims on the way to such a temple even try to imitate the behavior of monkeys, thereby showing the greatest respect to their idol. During religious festivals, bright, colorful processions of thousands of believers move through the streets, carrying images of the monkey god. The participants in the celebrations were filled with trembling excitement, and, as one witness to such a spectacle wrote, “no one refused to give alms to the numerous beggars sitting along the streets.”
According to Hindu beliefs, anyone who settles in the resting place of the monkey Hanuman will soon be overtaken by death. There are special “clairvoyants” who are invited to find out whether the remains of a monkey are buried in the place chosen to build a house.
It goes without saying that among religious Hindus, offending a sacred monkey is considered a grave sin, which some irresponsible people take advantage of by “inviting” monkeys to “annoy” an enemy or a quarrelsome neighbor. For this purpose, they sprinkle rice on the roof of his house. The monkey instantly realizes what’s going on and goes for the treat. And since grains of rice inevitably roll under the tiles that cover the roof, the monkey breaks them off in search of a treat, thus causing considerable damage to the unwanted one. And try to touch her!
Monkeys of the genus langurs ( Presbytis) are considered the fastest primates on earth, capable of running at speeds of up to 40 kilometers per hour. They can also jump from one tree to another, 15 meters away. When a monkey gives birth to a baby, the new mother is immediately surrounded by many females, obviously delighted with the addition to the family. The baby is strikingly different in color from the adult monkey. In these monkeys, there were cases of killing of cubs when a foreign male took the place of the head of the family. Some scientists explain such cruel behavior by the fact that females who have lost their offspring quickly become ready to resume sex life, because now they no longer need to feed the baby milk. According to scientists, the male knows about this and destroys the offspring left from the previous father.
Another interesting monkey from the langur genus is the common proboscis monkey, or kahau ( Nasalis larvatus), found in the swampy forests of Borneo. Some biologists consider it the most extravagant of all monkey species. The male has an amazing nose, reaching 17 centimeters in length and hanging below the chin. Exact explanations for this miracle of nature have not yet been found, but it seems that the long nose serves as a resonator for the male’s characteristic loud “call signs”, reminiscent of “kahau” (hence the second name of the proboscis). And the locals call this monkey “blanda,” as they called the first Dutch colonists.
Monkeys can also be found in some temples in Nepal, but here the Rhesus monkey is held in high esteem ( Macaca mulatta). Whole crowds of these tailed creatures roam freely around some Hindu temples. They say that people settled sacred monkeys in temples two thousand years ago - since then they have lived there, generation after generation. Currently, about 300 rhesus macaques permanently reside in the famous Pashupati Temple in Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal. Is it necessary to explain what a comfortable life they lead in this sacred place for Hindus? They are fed everything: rice, ground nuts, and pumpkin! When they go out for a walk, people vying with each other to offer them sweets. Sacred monkeys are strongly protected by Nepalese laws.
Rhesus macaques can also be seen in the Buddhist temple in Swayambhu - apparently, in ancient times, these animals came here from the forest, and when people fed them, they decided to stay here forever.
