Mammals
Bonnet Macaque
Macaca radiata · also called bonnet macaques
Perched near the entrance to a bustling southern Indian temple, a bonnet macaque displays the distinctive whorl of hair radiating from its crown that gives the species its name, a familiar sight to visitors across a country it calls home and nowhere else.
Overview
The bonnet macaque, Macaca radiata, is a highly adaptable primate found nowhere else in the world outside southern India, native to forest and grassland habitat there. Its distinctive crown of radiating hair, comfortable coexistence with towns and temples, and growing competition from the expanding rhesus macaque make it one of the more culturally familiar yet increasingly pressured monkeys found anywhere in India.
A familiar face losing ground
Long a common sight around southern Indian temples and towns, the bonnet macaque now faces mounting pressure not just from habitat loss but from a close relative expanding into its territory, a competitive squeeze on top of already shrinking natural habitat.
Status
Least Concern, though habitat loss and competition from the expanding rhesus macaque have contributed to a decreasing population trend across southern India.
Bonnet Macaque: common questions
Why is the bonnet macaque named that?
This species has a distinctive whorl of hair on the top of its head that radiates outward from a central point, resembling a woven cap, a feature that inspired both the species' common name and its scientific name, radiata.
Why is the bonnet macaque so often seen around temples in India?
This species has adapted readily to life around towns, temples, and tourist sites, often becoming accustomed to close contact with people and reliant on food provided or left behind by humans, making it a familiar sight across much of southern India.
Is the bonnet macaque found anywhere outside India?
No, this species is found nowhere else in the world outside southern India, making it an important and geographically restricted part of the region's native primate fauna.
Why has the bonnet macaque declined in parts of its range?
This species has faced increasing competition and displacement in parts of its range from the rhesus macaque, whose range has been expanding southward into bonnet macaque territory, compounding pressures from habitat loss across southern India.