Gabon Talapoin

• Common Name: Gabon Talapoin
• Taxonomy Classification Year: 1997
• Monkey Size: 25 to 40 cm (9.84 to 15.75 in)
• Skin Color(s): Greenish-gray
• Habitat: Forest
• Diet: Omnivorous
• Native Countries: Gabon, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Democratic Republic of Congo

The Gabon talapoin^[1], also called the northern talapoin, is a small species of African primate endemic to riverine habitats in Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon, the far western Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the western Republic of the Congo.

• They have a greenish-gray coat that is speckled with gold spots here and there.
• A large, light-colored bib protrudes from under their rounded snout and blends into the whitish fur on their chest.
• The golden fur shines in extravagant patches around the brow and mouth.
• Although they look strikingly like their Talapoin cousins ​​from southern Angola, their skin isn’t as dark.
• This distinction is most evident in their large ears and the bald patches around their mouth and eyes. A male is distinguished only by his size, but his bluish genitalia is more revealing.

• Talapoins are the smallest species of Old-World primates. They are so small that an untrained eye might mistake their agile bodies and delicate round heads for some New-World primates such as squirrel monkeys.
• Whether they socialize, foraging for fruit, or hunting bugs, they do their business very calmly.
• Gabon talapoins catch and eat freshwater prawns and extract African ginger roots from the ground.
• Some research suggests that talapoin monkeys exhibit very pro-social, sometimes affectionate, behaviors toward infants and members of their pride.
• While foraging in dense undergrowth with their troop, a female talapoin will make a short “uh” sound, which can go up or down, to let others know where she is.