After our first encounter with red howler monkeys group in the dense mountain jungle (in the southernmost part of Venezuela), we continued moving toward the mountaintop.
Just before we reached it, a handsome, strong-looking specimen appeared before us, with a threatening tone, as if to say: “Stop…” It turned out to be the leader of one of the clans that controls that part of the mountain.
My friends from Sweden (Ulf and Jonas, both Biologist) and I divided the red howler monkeys into two groups: Alpha Group and Beta Group (for easier identification). It turned out that the red howler monkey that appeared before us was the leader of Group Beta 🐒🐒
They were preparing for a battle for control of the territory and for the harem of females in heat. What we didn’t know at that moment was that we were about to witness an epic battle between two opposing sides. We were in the middle of a fierce battle🤔🫣🐒🐒