The Saimiri is commonly known by the name of the _Aurora_, the
_Orange_, or _Yellow Sapajou_. It is very common at Guiana, for which
reason many travellers have styled it the _Cayenne Sapajou_. From the
gracefulness of its motions, the smallness of its size, the brilliant
colour of its coat, the fullness and brightness of its eyes, and its
small round visage, the saimiri has ever taken the lead of every
other sapajou, and it is, in fact, the most beautiful and pleasing of
this tribe; but it is also the most delicate and the most difficult
to transport and preserve. From these characters, and particularly
from that of the tail, which may be said to be but half prehensile,
for though it makes use of it to climb up trees, yet it can neither
strongly hold, nor firmly fix itself by it, it seems to form the shade
between the sapajous and the sagoins.
_Distinctive Characters of this Species._
The saimiri has neither pouches on each side the cheeks, nor
callosities on the posteriors. The partition which divides the nostrils
is thick, and the apertures are placed on the side and not under the
nose. He may be said to have no forehead. His hair is of a bright
yellow colour; and he has two flesh-coloured rings round the eyes. His
nose is elevated at the root, and flat towards the nostrils. The mouth
is small, the face flat and naked, and the ears are garnished with
hair and a little pointed. The tail is half-prehensile and longer than
the body. He is scarcely more than ten or eleven inches in length. He
stands on his hind feet with great ease, but he commonly walks on all
fours.