Head to head
Crested Black Macaque vs Lion-Tailed Macaque
Crested Black Macaque
VS Lion-Tailed Macaque
The crested black macaque and lion-tailed macaque are two rare, rainforest macaques of Asia, each restricted to a single region and each under heavy pressure.
| Crested Black Macaque | Lion-Tailed Macaque | |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific name | Macaca nigra | Macaca silenus |
| Appearance | A coal-black coat with a tall crest of hair on top of its head | A silver-white mane framing its dark face, and a tail ending in a lion-like tuft |
| Range | Rainforest in northern Sulawesi, Indonesia, and a few nearby islands | Rainforest of the Western Ghats mountain range of southern India |
| Diet | Mainly fruit, along with seeds, leaves, insects, and small animals | Mainly fruit, along with seeds, insects, and small vertebrates |
| Lifestyle | Lives in large mixed groups of dozens of animals | Highly arboreal for a macaque, spending most of its time in the canopy |
| Famous for | The 2011 monkey selfie, taken with a photographer's camera | Being one of the rarest and most endangered macaques in the world |
| Main threats | Heavy hunting for meat, and loss of forest | Clearing and fragmentation of rainforest across the Western Ghats |
| Conservation status | Critically Endangered, with a decreasing population | Endangered, with a decreasing population |
Crested Black Macaque vs Lion-Tailed Macaque: common questions
Which macaque took the famous selfie?
A crested black macaque, which took a series of selfies with a photographer's camera in 2011.
Why is it called the lion-tailed macaque?
It has a long tail ending in a tufted point resembling a lion's tail, along with a silver-white mane.
Where do the crested black and lion-tailed macaques live?
The crested black macaque lives in northern Sulawesi, Indonesia, while the lion-tailed macaque lives in the Western Ghats of southern India.