Among the most curious of the monkey tribe are the ateles, or
spider-monkeys,--called also Cebidae, and, by the natives sapajous, one
of the species of the coaita, or quata. As they are seen gambolling
among the trees, with their long limbs, and still longer tails, ever
actively employed, their resemblance to huge spiders is remarkable. Not
that the creature is always in a state of activity, for it will often
sit swinging slowly backwards and forwards, or place itself in the
oddest of attitudes without moving a limb, as if resting after its
exertions, or, in a contemplative mood, watching the proceedings in the
world below. Sometimes a whole colony may thus be seen, when the native
huntsman, approaching with his deadly blow-pipe, can without difficulty
pick them off one by one, and secure his prey. But let them be alarmed,
and away they go through the forest, swinging themselves from bough to
bough, at a rate which no other creature, without wings, can exceed.
In the spider-monkeys, the tail, as a prehensile organ, reaches its
highest degree of perfection, and they may therefore be considered as
the extreme development of the American type of apes. Their tails are
endowed with the most wonderful degree of flexibility. They are always
in motion--except when the animal is perfectly at rest--coiling and
uncoiling themselves, like the trunks of elephants, seeking to grasp,
apparently, whatever comes within their reach.
The coaita can apply its tail to all sorts of uses. So delicate is its
touch, that one would almost think it possessed the power of sight.
Should it discover a nest of eggs or any creature in a crevice too small
for its paw to enter, it inserts the end of its tail and hooks out the
tit-bit.
The animal is of considerable size, and is covered with coarse black
hair--with the exception of the face, parts of which are of a tawny
flesh-coloured hue. There are various species, each of which has its
peculiar district; and they vary slightly in appearance.
In the neighbourhood of Obydos, the Ateles paniscus has its abode; while
in the Upper Amazon the white-whiskered coaita (Ateles marginatus) takes
its place. It is remarkable that animals which apparently have the
means of moving without difficulty at a rapid rate in any direction
should thus be confined to particular localities.