Kickass Costa Rican Wildlife: The Squirrel Monkey

As promised, I have decided to give the more asinine of Costa Rican fauna a little rest for a while due to my not wanting to give this amazing little country a bad name. Yes the place inspired Jurassic Park, sure people get literally eaten by things here, and sure maybe some of the snakes should seek some kind of anger management therapy. But let's not let them spoil it for the rest of them. There are just as many, if not more, cute and cuddly denizens of the rainforests and shorelines here.

Case in point, this cute little guy here...

 This is Simia sciureus, or the Squirrel Monkey, and he's pretty common down here. As the name implies, he's pretty small (25 to 35 cm plus a 35 to 42 cm tail), and likes to hop around in fruit trees all day. He doesn't make that much noise, they don't throw poop at you, and they do not have the slightest taste for human flesh.

My first experience with them was in Manuel Antonio National Park where their numbers are still thriving despite the rush of development that is encroaching on their natural habitat. They make a noise that is somewhat like a child's squeak toy or rubber ducky. I absolutely love them. They are very friendly and will oftentimes "join" you for whatever picnic meal you may be eating as I soon discovered. Luckily they are vegetarians, so your burgers and hot dogs are safe. The corn though...yeah that's forfeit. One of the most adorable things I have ever seen in my life is watching one of these little dudes try and eat an ear of corn on the cob that was almost bigger than them....

Much like one of the Costa Rican national heroes, Astronaut Franklin R. Chang-Diaz, the squirrel monkey has extensive experience in outer space. In fact, he could be considered the animal kingdom's answer to John Glenn in that his species has been in space more than any other primate besides us (yes fundies...we are primates...deal). Go ahead and click on the image on the left and you will see this little dude "Baker" giving a proud smile for his accomplishments. Note to PETA members, this rocket is a scale model and not the actual rocket with a monkey duct taped to it like in the Mexican space program.

So let's watch some videos! 

And here is a rare attack by one after someone accidentally kicks it. I'm sure the bottled up rage of being in a diaper contributed to it as well...

So this ends my first installment of  "Kickass Costa Rican Wildlife", how was it? Boring? Let me know if you like this train of features or if the fiercer critters are more interesting!