Mantled Howler - Taxonomy

Taxonomy

The mantled howler belongs to the New World monkey family Atelidae, the family that contains the howler monkeys, spider monkeys, woolly monkeys and muriquis. It is a member of the subfamily Alouattinae and genus Alouatta, the subfamily and genus containing all the howler monkeys. The species name is A. palliata; a pallium was a cloak or mantle worn by ancient Greeks and Romans.

Three subspecies are recognized:

• Ecuadorian mantled howler, Alouatta palliata aequatorialis, in Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Panama and Peru;
• Golden-mantled howler, Alouatta palliata palliata, in Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua;
• Mexican howler, Alouatta palliata mexicana, in Mexico and Guatemala.

Two additional subspecies of the mantled howler are sometimes recognised, but these are more generally recognised as subspecies of the Coiba Island howler, Allouatta coibensis. However, mitochondrial DNA testing of their status has been inconclusive:

• Azuero howler, Alouatta palliata trabeata, in Panama;
• Alouatta palliata coibensis, in Panama.