Southern Pig-tailed Macaque

About the Southern Pig-tailed Macaque

The southern pig-tailed macaque (Macaca nemestrina), also known as the Sundaland pig-tailed macaque and the Sunda pig-tailed macaque, is a medium-sized macaque that lives in Sundaland, southern Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia. It is known locally as beruk.

The species epithet, nemestrina, is an adjective (derived from Latin Nemestrinus, meaning "the god of groves") modified to agree in gender with the feminine generic name. M. nemestrina formerly included the northern pig-tailed, Pagai Island, and Siberut macaques as subspecies. All four are now considered separate species.

In the 19th century, bruh was the native name used by Malays in Sumatra for the macaque. As with other Macaca species, males are larger than females; while males are measured at 50–58 cm (20–23 in) in length and 5–12 kg (11–26 lb) in weight, females are measured at 38–48 cm (15–19 in) in length and 4.5–6 kg (9.9–13.2 lb) in weight. This macaque has buff-brown fur, with a darker dorsal area and lighter ventral area. Its common name refers to the short tail held semi-erect, resembling the tail of a pig.

M. nemestrina is mainly terrestrial... Wikipedia →