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General Information

COMMON NAMES: Rhesus Macaque, Rhesus Monkey TRADITIONAL NAMES: Mangikī (RR) GLOBAL DISTRIBUTION: NATIVE Afghanistan - India - Thailand - s.China COOK ISLANDS STATUS: Introduced - Recent, Not naturalised; S.Group only (Rarotonga, 1 domestic); Land, domestic SIGNIFICANCE LIST: Pet KEY FEATURES: A sand-coloured macaque about 30cm long, excluding the furry, 30cm tail, and it weighs up to 11kg.

Cook Islands Distribution

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Southern Group: Present    Makatea: -
RR	MG	AT	MK	MT	AK	PL	TK	MN
+	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-

Northern Group: -
TN	MH	RK	PK	NS	SW
-	-	-	-	-	-

Macaca mulatta Zimmermann, 1780
TAXONOMY: ANIMALIA; CHORDATA; GNATHOSTOMATA (Jawed Vertebrates); TETRAPODA; MAMMALIA; THERIA; EUTHERIA; Primates; Anthropoidea; CERCOPITHIDAE

SIGNIFICANCE NOTES -
POSITIVE SIGNIFICANCE: Pet. Comments: Two Rhesus Monkeys were brought to Rarotonga around 1990 for a Zoo at Muri. After the Zoo collapsed they passed to John Abbott around 1993. The older male died within a couple of years, the female was still alive in 1999, aged about 13 years.[Fritha Stalker]

GENERAL NOTE: Rhesus Monkeys are hardy in captivity and are very intelligent. Their natural diet consists of fruits, seeds, roots, herbs, and insects. They can thrive in a variety of climates and natural environments. The rhesus monkey is held sacred in some parts of India and is the object of tolerant affection on the part of many Buddhists, with the result that groups of the monkeys have long made their homes near human settlements, especially around Buddhist or Hindu temples. It is also an important experimental animal that is used in medical and psychological research. The determination of the Rh (from rhesus) factor in human blood involves reaction with the blood of this monkey; a rhesus was also the first monkey to be rocketed into the stratosphere.

Vouchers:
Rarotonga fieldspecimen, 1999, Avarua at Perfume Factory, F.Stalker & G.McCormack with ID Macaca mulatta; same monkey, 2006, Dr Dionne Burnet with ID as Burmese Rhesus, 21 years old, female (Lulu), originally brought to Rarotonga in 1985 for the Marine Zoo in Ngatangiia, and when that ceased John Abbot gave her a home (CINews, 11 March 2006, p.8).

References:
None recorded.

Data Update History (information):
zB02, zD02

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