Bald-headed uakari  (Cacajao calvus)

Habitat destruction and hunting are the main causes of the decline in bald-headed uakari numbers. These monkeys are hunted in many parts of Peru and Brazil, either for meat or as bait; their riverine forest habitat makes them particularly vulnerable to hunting from canoes (1).

Very few effective protection measures exist to preserve the future of the bald-headed uakari, although the species is protected by law in Peru (7). Further information on the natural ecology and distribution of this species is urgently needed before effective conservation measures can be put in place.