Black Squirrel Monkey

Open encyclopedia reference

The black squirrel monkey (Saimiri vanzolinii), also known as the blackish squirrel monkey or black-headed squirrel monkey, is a small New World primate, endemic to the central Amazon in Brazil. It largely resembles the female of the far more common Bolivian squirrel monkey, though the latter lacks the black central back.

This squirrel monkey has one of the most restricted geographical distributions for a primate, living in várzea forest in the confluence of the Japura and Solimões rivers. Its entire range is within the Mamirauá Sustainable Development Reserve. It resides in the reserve with two other Saimiri species. It is a social primate that travels with other black squirrel monkeys in large troops within its habitat. Its small size makes it an easy target for its predators; however, it may resist predators when it travels in large troops.

Its species overall has positive effects on the economy.

Wikipedia contributors, Black squirrel monkey; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T09:06:01.471910+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Saimiri vanzolinii Ayres, 1985

Name authority

Ayres, 1985

Common name

Black Squirrel Monkey

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Mammalia

Order

Primates

Family

Cebidae

Genus

Saimiri

Extinction status

Recorded extant

Classification family tree

Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. megaclassTetrapoda
8. classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
9. subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
10. infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
11. orderPrimates Linnaeus, 1758
12. suborderHaplorrhini Pocock, 1918
13. infraorderSimiiformes Haeckel, 1866
14. familyCebidae Bonaparte, 1831
15. subfamilySaimiriinae Miller, 1812
16. genusSaimiri Voigt in G. Cuvier, 1831
17. speciesSaimiri vanzolinii Ayres, 1985

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Saimiri. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

Browse 15 records assigned to Cebidae.

Documented distribution

Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.

Source literature & publication evidence

References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.

1. https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=572982 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references

Origins, evidence & remaining research

Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.

Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.

Dataset citation & attribution

This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11

Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.

Stable key: col:4TZK5. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.