Breeding: The male Barbary ape actively cares for the young of the group.  He Establishes strong bonds. He establishes strong bonds with individual infant apes and with individual infant apes and with others males.  Because a female may have several males, it is not easy for researchers to determine paternity (fatherhood) of the young.  Therefore, the reason for the bonding between a male and several infant apes is unknown, since such bonding normally occurs only between the young and its parents. Some naturalist believe that females may be more likely to choose nurturing males as mates, so the males try to exhibit this trait.

Food & Feeding: In Algeria and Morocco, Barbary  apes eat a varied diet of fruit, herbs, seedlings, seeds, and roots. In winter, when food is scarce, they eat buds needles, and bark.  These sociable apes share their watering holes with other species of ape during the dry seasons.

Barbary Ape & Man: The Man is the main threat today to the Barbary ape's existence. This is especially true for those apes that live on the plains, where farmers hunt them because of the damage they do to crops.  The only Barbary apes not found the colony on Gibraltar.  these are descendants of the european apes that existed during the Pleistocene era, although the colony's population as been reinforced by breeding with the North African apes.

The population of the apes on Gibraltar has changed over the years.  In 1858 only three Barbary Apes survived an epidemic, and more animals were brought to the island from north Africa. during World War II, the British again restocked the colony on Gibraltar by adding to the population from the apes in Algeria and Morocco

Behavior: Barbary Apes are found on the plains and mountains of Algeria and Morocco. They can live at altitudes of up to 6,500 feet. the apes inhabit forest clearing and sparse undergrowth. they are often found among cedar, pine, and oak forests.  These is also one colony that lives on the Rock of Gibraltar, which lies between the Atlantic Ocean and the mediterranean Sea.

Barbary apes are sociable and live in highly organized communities of up to 30 animals. They occupy territories of several square miles that sometimes overlap with those of troops of other ape species.  The Barbary apes and the other species are able to live near each other with out territorial problems.  At night the Barbary apes sleep in trees or among rocks; during the day they roam their territory, jumping and climbing among the rocks nd trees.  the apes usually move on all fours, standing on their hind legs only to survey the areas for predators.

Key Facts: Sizes, Weight, breeding, lifestyle, related Species
Length: Male, 2 to 21/2 ft, Female, slightly smaller
Weight: Male, 15 to 22 lbs, Female, 9 to 15 lbs

Breeding:
Sexual Maturity: 3 to 4 years
Mating: November to March
Gestation: 147 to 192 days
Numbers of young:  Usually 1, occasionally 2

Lifestyle:
Habit: Sociable, groups of 10 to 30
Diet:  Fruit, seeds, roots, bark, and buds.
Life span: 20  years

Related Species: Other monkeys in the macaque (Macaca) genus include the pigtailed macaque, M. nigra, and the endangered lion tailed macaque m.silenus.
Distribution: Found in northwestern africa in Morocco and Algeria. One colony exists on Gibraltar.
Conservation: The total population is approximately 1,200 to 2,000 Barbary apes. Habitat destruction is causing a decline in numbers.

Features of Barbary Ape:
Sociable: Lives in groups of 10 to 30. the male helps care for the young in the group.
Body: Sturdy thick and tailless.
Head: Round sits on short neck.
Coat: Yellow brown, shorter on belly.
Legs: Hind legs shorter than front legs: Walks on all fours. stands erect to watch for predators.

Did you know?
In 1942 Winston churchill ordered the immediate restocking of the Barbary ape colony on Gibraltar, which was a vital strategic base for Great Britain during World War II. legend had it that as long as there were apes on Gibraltar it would remain under British rule.