_Simia inuus_, Linn., Syst. Nat., i., p. 34 (1766).
_Simia sylvanus_, Linn., t.c. p. 35.
_Inuus ecaudatus_, Geoffr., Ann. Mus., xix., p. 100 (1812); Gray, Cat.
Monkeys Brit. Mus., p. 32 (1870).
_Le magot_, F. Cuvier et Geoffr., Mamm., livr. ii. (1819); F. Cuv.,
Mammif., p. 114, pl. 41.
_Macacus inuus_, Desmar., Mamm., p. 67 (1820).
_Inuus pithecus_, Is. Geoffr., Cat. Méth., Primates, p. 31 (1851).
_Macacus sylvanus_, Schl., Mus. Pays-Bas, vii., p. 115 (1876).
CHARACTERS.--Body short and thick-set, and about as big as a
moderately-sized Dog. Head oblong, long, rounded, and wrinkled; face and
chin naked; eyes approximated, set deep below the superciliary ridges; brow
small; neck short. Ears pointed at their hind upper angle, and their
margins haired; nose not prominent; nostrils two slit-like orifices
converging at right angles to the partition; lips slender, extensile; upper
{5}lip broad; callosities less extensive than in the Baboons; tail
invisible externally; toes longer than the fingers, and both much haired.
Hair on the crown short and reflexed; hairs on the cheeks forming a
whisker, directed backward; hair of the fore-arms directed towards the
elbow.
Crown, and sides of head, cheeks, neck, shoulders, upper back, and front of
fore-limbs golden-yellow, mixed with a few black hairs, the individual
hairs being dark grey at the base, ringed for the rest of their length with
yellow and grey; the rest of the upper part of the body greyish-yellow or
yellowish-brown; under side of lower jaw, lower side of body, and inner
face of limbs greyish-yellow, or yellowish-white; a dark spot of black
hairs tipped with yellow at the inner angle of each eye, and stretching
down on the cheeks; naked parts of face, ears, and callosities pale
flesh-colour, as also is the thinly-haired skin of the inner sides of the
limbs; tail represented by a small tubercle of naked skin. Length of the
body, 2½ feet.
FEMALE.--Exactly resembles the male in coloration, but is slightly smaller
in size, and more amiable in disposition; the canines scarcely larger than
the incisors.
DISTRIBUTION.--This species, named by the French "Magot," inhabits Morocco,
and Algeria in Northern Africa. It is found also on the Rock of Gibraltar,
and some distance inland in Spain; but whether it has been transported from
Africa, or has lived there since its ancestors were left isolated when the
Straits of Gibraltar subsided and separated Europe from Africa, is a
question impossible to decide now. It is certain that the Moors bring now,
and probably for ages have been in the habit of bringing, captive specimens
of this Monkey, to trade away on the European side; it is, therefore,
{6}not impossible that the "Apes of the Rock" may have thus been
introduced. This is the only African (or European) species of the genus.
HABITS.--This Monkey has been known to science for many centuries. It is
now certain, as M. Frederick Cuvier remarks in his "History of Mammals,"
thanks to the researches of M. de Blainville upon the Monkey dissected by
Galen, that the _Pithecus_ of Aristotle was our Magot, as we know of no
other species of Macaque without a tail. The Barbary Macaques, when on the
ground, invariably walk on their four legs, but in an uneasy and clumsy
manner compared with their motions when climbing; they are far more at home
in trees or rocks, where they climb with amazing rapidity. They live
chiefly on fruits and leaves, feeding themselves with their hands, and
smelling everything they are uncertain about, before putting it into the
mouth. They also eat grass very readily. They are found in large crowds in
the forests of Barbary, which reach to the sea, and are very destructive to
the cultivated fields of the Moors, on which they make constant raids, and
during which, like the Baboons, they post sentinels to give warning of
danger to their foraging friends. This Monkey sleeps on its side or in a
sitting posture with its head dropped between its knees.
On the European side of the Mediterranean, these Apes were at one time very
abundant on the Rock of Gibraltar, but as they robbed the gardens of the
garrison they were killed by every means for several years, till they were
eventually reduced to three. Orders were, however, issued by the
authorities for their preservation, and a few additional pairs were
imported from Africa. They now frequent the inaccessible ledges of the
Rock, especially on its Mediterranean face, on which they climb about with
marvellous rapidity.
{7}In reply to inquiries about the present condition of the Barbary Apes
(_Macacus inuus_) on the Rock, Dr. Sclater records in 1893 that General Sir
Lothian Bell, the Governor of Gibraltar, had informed him "that they were
now distinctly increasing in numbers. He had himself counted as many as
thirty in one group, and, according to some reports, there were altogether
as many as double that number on the Rock. In fact they were so numerous,
and their depredations had become so serious that a short time ago an
agitation had been got up for their reduction in numbers, and it would
perhaps be necessary to thin them a little, but their extermination was
quite out of the question, and would not be thought of."
These animals are remarkably affectionate parents, the mother constantly
tending her single young one, while the males may often be seen carrying
about some of the babies of the troop. When young the "Rock Ape" is playful
and gentle; but, when old, becomes ill-natured and vicious.
When angry their jaws are moved up and down with great rapidity, while they
give utterance to loud and harsh cries. The males fight with their strong
canine teeth and their long and strong, though flat, nails, with which they
are capable of inflicting deep wounds on each other. When in a good temper
their voice is generally soft; but Mr. Darwin observed in the Zoological
Gardens that a specimen there, when pleased, made a shrill note, and
likewise drew back the corners of its mouth, apparently through the
contraction of the same muscles as with human beings. The skin of the lower
eyelids also became much wrinkled. "At the same time it rapidly moved its
lower jaw or lips in a spasmodic manner, the teeth being exposed; but the
noise produced was hardly more distinct than that which we call silent
laughter. Two of the keepers affirmed that this {8}slight sound was the
animal's laughter, and when I expressed some doubt on this head (being at
the time quite inexperienced) they made it attack, or rather threaten, a
hated _Entellus_ Monkey, living in the same compartment. Instantly the
whole expression of the face of the _Inuus_ changed; the mouth was opened
much more widely, the canine teeth were more fully exposed, and a hoarse
barking noise was uttered."