Monkey Freehand Sketch

The monkeys (Anthropoidea, Simiae or Simiiformes), also called "actual monkeys", "true monkeys" or "higher primates", are a primate family group belonging to the dry-nosed primates. Traditionally, they have been contrasted with the "prosimians", but they are more closely related to the tarsier macaques than to the other members of this group. They are divided into the New World monkeys and the Old World monkeys, to which humans also belong. With the exception of the nocturnal monkeys, monkeys are always diurnal. They have developed different ways of locomotion; in addition to bipedal walking (humans) and quadrupedal walking, there is also vertical climbing and jumping and swinging shimmying. The majority of monkey species are predominantly or purely arboreal.

Monkeys have in most cases developed a complex social behaviour, solitary individuals are rare. Some species form large mixed groups, others live in harem groups in which a single male gathers numerous females around him, still others live in long-term monogamous relationships. In groups, a hierarchy often develops that is determined by fighting, age, kinship and other factors.The majority of monkey species are primarily herbivores. Fruits are often the main component of the diet, supplemented by leaves, flowers, tubers, mushrooms, seeds, nuts, tree sap and other plant parts. However, many species are omnivorous, eating both plant and animal food, especially insects, spiders, birds' eggs and small vertebrates.