The Moor macaque (Macaca maura) is a macaque species with brown/black body fur with a pale rump patch and pink bare skin on the rump. It has ischial callosities, which are oval-shaped. with female philopatry and male dispersal and they are diurnal and semi-terrestrial. They spend a lot of their time in trees foraging and on the ground travelling.

According to the Behavioural Data collection done on 2 groups of Moor macaques in the Bantimurung Bulusaraung National Park in South Sulawesi, Like many other frugivorous primates, Moor macaques  have made significant contributions to the environment, helping to support high densities of seedlings and saplings as well as the process of gene flow among plant populations. This is crucial for sustaining forest regeneration and restoring vegetation in degraded forests.

Taxonomy

The Moor macaque made its first appearance in western science through the work of Heinrich Rudolf Schinz in 1825.

Distribution and habitat

The Indonesian island of Sulawesi hosts 7 species of macaques with one of them being the Moor macaque. Unfortunately, the Moor macaque is endemic to the island and is considered to be endangered by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The Moor macaque is the only species of macaques that existed naturally in South Sulawesi. Moor macaques have significant ecological flexibility that enables them to use several forest strata, including secondary habitats. and they are commonly found with the endemic Malkoha birds that feed on grasshoppers, which are pushed out of the canopy by the macaques' movements. Group fission occurs in Moor macaques, competition between females for food does not seem to be the reason for fission. However, some studies relate group fission to competition among females for food resources, others attribute it to increased sexual competition among males, and some others relate this phenomenon to establishing home ranges, specifically in Moor macaque groups with overlapped home ranges.

During agonistic encounters, wild Moor macaques have low inter-individual distances, uncommon strong aggression, a strong conciliatory tendency, and limited support for kin.

Sexual behavior

Perineal swelling is an important factor in the sexual life of Moor macaques. As this species does not have a marked reproductive season, not all females swell at the same time. Poor dietary factors appear to be associated with a delay in the onset of perineal swelling and first parturition.

From the end of the rainy season to the start of the dry season, there appeared to be a rise in births. The moor macaques are classified as moderately seasonal breeders based on the fact that 33-67% of their newborns occur in a single three-month period. The peak might be explained by yearly increases in food supply, particularly a rise in fruit.]]

Changes in group fission process and furcation patterns may reflect differences in social characteristics among species as well as ecological and demographic differences among populations; thus, studies of group fission may contribute to our general understanding of why primates live in a variety of groupings.

Special relationships between certain males and females can either trigger or encourage group fission. In Moor macaques, however, significant connection between specific males and females does not appear to affect the process of fission. Play is an excessive, spontaneous, and self-rewarding behavior that serves no immediate purpose and frequently takes place in non-stressful circumstances.]]

Diet

Despite their frequently changing habitats, Moor macaques are characterized by having a flexible diet. Due to their endemic status to the island of Sulawesi, most of their interactions used to be with the Bantimurung Bulusaraung National Park staff and researchers who would feed them, which is considered as consistent provisioning. Starting the year 2015, they started interacting with vehicles that would drive along a road located in their home range, which is considered as inconsistent provisioning. Food provisioning, in which people purposefully offer food to nonhuman primates, may result in rapid habituation of wildlife such that they approach humans for food, take food from their hands, and perhaps aggress toward them to elicit provisioning behavior. it has been observed that agroforests and forests cover can positively affect or increase the population of Moor macaques. Therefore, for better conservation and for the benefit of remnant subpopulations, forests in South Sulawesi Island should be protected and conserved. Raising awareness of the ecological importance of Moor macaques, and motivating people to conduct activities that are ecologically sustainable are also good actions towards the conservation of Moor macaques. While there are some studies done in South Sulawesi, more studies have to be conducted on other parts of the Island for an adequate conservation of this species.

  • Photos at ARKive.