Photo of the Day #771: Gelada baboon

i-484ec99045d09fe18e4f097e3234a595-phplOibGSAM-thumb-500x335-22580.jpg


A gelada baboon (Theropithecus gelada), photographed at the Bronx Zoo.


More like this

A Gelada baboon (Theropithecus gelada), photographed at the Bronx Zoo.
A gelada (Theropithecus gelada), photographed at the Bronx Zoo.
A male gelada (Theropithecus gelada), photographed at the Bronx Zoo.
A male gelada (Theropithecus gelada), photographed at the Bronx Zoo.

What I find fascinating about the gelada is how, as the only true grass-grazing primate, it has filled the niche in the Ethiopian Highlands that would usually be filled by other herbivorous ungulates such as antelope or deer elsewhere in the world- a good example of optimal foraging theory.

The Bronx Zoo has a very exciting array of animals. When were the geladas added?

By JefFlyingV (not verified) on 23 Nov 2009 #permalink