Macaques live in many different habitats across the globe, making them the most widely distributed genus of nonhuman primates. Macaques are commonly used in medical research. Their coloration includes gray, brown or black fur. They tend to be heavily built and medium to large in stature. Males and females may differ in weight, body size and canine size. Macaques are native to Asia and Northern Africa, but thousands are housed in research facilities, zoos, wildlife or amusement parks, and are kept as pets in private homes throughout the world.

Long-tailed macaque monkeys have a reputation for knowing exactly how to find their much needed food. Researchers say they have discovered a group of silver-haired monkeys in Indonesia's East Kalimantan and North Sumatra provinces scooping up fish along the rivers with their hands and eating them.

Macaques also have a very intricate social structure and hierarchy. If a macaque is a lower level in the social chain has eaten berries and there is none left for the higher level macaque, then the one higher in status is allowed to physically remove the berries from the other monkey's mouth.

Primates such as the macaque are very much like us as humans and experience the same emotions that we do such as love, anger, and sadness. There is a story about a certain macaque named Piotr that you can read on www.primatefreedom. com. This monkey has been through some extraordinary things in his life. He has lived virtually his entire life as part of a social group of rhesus monkeys on public display at the Henry Vilas Zoo. These monkeys, known by name and loved by area children and adults, were protected from any invasive or harmful experimentation. This protection was guaranteed through at least three written agreements between the administration of the Wisconsin Regional Primate Research Center (WRPRC), Dane County, and the Henry Vilas Zoo. Piotr had lived his life in a rich social setting with access to the open air, where sunshine, birds, and breezes entered his home in spring and summer. When he matured, Piotr became a highranking male who sired at least twenty-four infants. Later in life, Piotr's social status changed. Less obviously powerful, he played the role of a benevolent uncle. Eventually, as is common during social dominance transition periods in macaque groups, Piotr went through what would have been a brief period of being picked on by the other macaques.

Macaques, even those living in a confined space, will normally work out their conflicts, given the opportunity. This is part of the flexibility of their social behavior, studied at great length by behavioral scientists. Little did Piotr know at the time, but he would soon be picked on by humans who understood nothing of his society and who would not listen to anyone who did.

Story continued on website.

If you are interested in this story and would like to learn more about this macaque and others like him, visit http://www.primatefreedom.co m/tagreports/wipiotr.shtml and after reading the story if you would like to help out with the cause please do so because monkeys deserve better then this.