Cas, a young endangered Geoffroy's spider monkey at Wildtracks
Cas is growing rapidly. He has gained confidence and is beginning to explore more, though always within arms length of his dedicated caregivers. In the wild, Cas would be doing the same, beginning to explore the trees, all within reach of his mother. As a victim of the illegal primate pet trade, Cas will have to make do with his team of dedicated human carers until he is old enough to integrated with a troop of his own, and prepared for release back into the wild.
Photograph by Wildtracks
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Swing Through the Trees With Amazing Spider Monkeys
Spider monkeys have a prehensile tail, a fifth limb that plays an important role as they spend their days high up in the tropical forest canopy. As National Geographic grantee Andrés Link explains in this video showing spider monkeys in the Magdalena River Valley of Colombia, the monkeys use their tail for added safety as they grasp tree branches. Spider monkeys can even let go with their arms and hang by their tail as they play and wrestle with each other. Baby spider monkeys also wrap their tiny tail around their mother's tail for security as they ride around on her back.
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