Golden snub-nosed monkey

황금들창코원숭이

Glowing golden fur and a sky-blue face make this monkey unmistakable in the cold mountain forests of central China, where groups can number in the hundreds. It lives higher and colder than most monkeys, even in winter snow.

See it on the 3D globe →

At a glance

Class: Mammals
Lives in: Qinling & Min Mountains, China
Diet: Plant eater (herbivore)
Conservation status: Endangered (IUCN EN)
Habitat: forests, mountains

Quick answers

Where does the Golden snub-nosed monkey live?

It lives in forests, mountains. On the globe you can find it near Qinling & Min Mountains, China.

What does the Golden snub-nosed monkey eat?

Its diet: plant eater (herbivore).

Is the Golden snub-nosed monkey endangered?

It is listed as Endangered (IUCN EN).

The golden snub-nosed monkey lives only in a small area of cold mountain forests in central and southwestern China, at heights of 1,500 to 3,400 metres. Its Chinese name means Sichuan golden hair monkey. It has golden fur on the shoulders, chest and belly, a reddish-brown back, bright blue skin around the eyes and a small upturned nose. It is the most widespread of China's three snub-nosed monkeys.

It can handle lower average temperatures than any other primate besides humans, and snow is common in its range. Its diet changes with the seasons, and lichens are the main food. Almost all its time, about 97 percent, is spent in the treetops. About 8,000 to 15,000 individuals are thought to remain, and habitat loss is a threat.

Where and how does it live?

The monkey is mainly a plant-eater and active by day. Our card says groups can number in the hundreds. It eats bamboo shoots, bark, fruit, leaves and insects. Its natural enemies include goshawks, wolves, dholes, Asian golden cats and leopards. It is the most widely distributed of the three snub-nosed monkeys in China, and it lives at heights up to 3,400 metres, where winters bring snow.

Three subspecies

There are three subspecies, set apart by tail length and some skeletal and dental features: the Moupin subspecies near the Sichuan Basin, the Qinling subspecies in southern Shaanxi and the Hubei subspecies in the Shennongjia area. Dense human settlement separates them. About 10,000 monkeys of the Moupin kind were counted in surveys from 1995 to 2006, around 3,800 to 4,000 of the Qinling kind in 2001.

Fun facts

Scientists think its flat, upturned nose may help protect it from frostbite in cold mountain winters.
It copes with colder weather than any other non-human primate.
Its main food is lichen.
It spends about 97 percent of its time in the trees.