Mandrills, Mandrill Pictures, Mandrill Facts

Bright red-and-blue facial markings identify this mandrill as a mature male. Mandrills are the world's largest monkeys.

Photograph by Tim Laman

Map

Mandrill Range

Fast Facts

Type:: Mammal
Diet:: Omnivore
Average life span in the wild:: 20 years
Size:: 3 ft (90 cm)
Weight:: 77 lbs (35 kg)
Group name:: Troop
Protection status:: Threatened
Size relative to a 6-ft (2-m) man:

Mandrills are the largest of all monkeys. They are shy and reclusive primates that live only in the rain forests of equatorial Africa.

Mandrills are extremely colorful, perhaps more so than any other mammal. They are easily identifiable by the blue and red skin on their faces and their brightly hued rumps. These distinctive colors become brighter when the animal is excited. They also have extremely long canine teeth that can be used for self-defense—though baring them is typically a friendly gesture among mandrills.

These are primarily terrestrial monkeys, and they move with long arms to forage on the ground for fruits, roots, and animals such as insects, reptiles, and amphibians. Their cheeks have built-in pouches that are used to store snacks for later consumption. Though mandrills spend much of their time on the ground, they can climb trees and do so to sleep.

Mandrills live in troops, which are headed by a dominant male and include a dozen or more females and young. They also gather in multi-male/multi-female groups that can include some 200 individuals.

These colorful primates are threatened. They are often hunted as bushmeat, and many Africans consider them to be a delicacy. Mandrills are feeling the squeeze of spreading agriculture and human settlement—both are shrinking their rain forest homeland.

Mammal Videos

Other Primates

Mammal Features

Animal Conservation

Find out what National Geographic Society is doing to save animals all over the world, and learn what you can do to help.
Crittercam Helps Study Rare Species

The Hawaiian monk seal is one of the oldest species of seal on the planet. But their tenure in paradise is perilously close to its end; only about 1,100 seals remain in the wild.
Lions Quiz

The king of cats rules with a roar and a fierce bite. What else do you know about this top predator?
Cause an Uproar

Big cats are quickly disappearing. Now is the time to act. Cause an uproar to save big cats today.

Please select a test to run

On Nat Geo WILD

TV Schedule »

Animal News

Animals

The Innovators Project

Alan Guth: Waiting for the Big Bang

Three decades ago, the innovative physicist had a eureka moment that explained the universe.

See more innovators »

Special Ad Section

From the Magazine

Gannets Pictures

Champion divers but clumsy landers, doting parents but hostile neighbors—northern gannets abound in contradictions.
Estonia's Ural Owls

Photographer Sven Začek provides an intimate view of this large raptor.