Monkeys get hot too and like to sit in the water to cool off. I have no idea why they would choose to sit in this dirty water in the canal coming from the gravel pit, but I guess it's better than nothing.
When Rafiki's group isn't hanging out in the canal, they go to a little water hole that is full of duckweed. So when they drink and bathe there they end up looking like this.
And of course the heat makes everyone very sleepy, including researchers. When you have just eaten, it's really hot, you woke up at 4am, and all of the monkeys are sleeping, it can be very difficult to stay awake. Taking photos of the sleeping baby monkeys helps :)
Sometimes I wonder why I work with baby monkeys since they can be so aggravating and difficult for conducting experiments. But their curiosity is one of the things that makes them so interesting. The young ones are always interested in what we are doing. Sometimes it's fun just to sit there and watch them watch me.
One of the most amazing things I have seen is that monkeys with "disabilities" are great at adapting and generally prosper as well as those without. We have monkeys missing body parts or with broken hands. This monkey, Arcadio, lost his tail at a young age. Prehensile tails are very important to monkeys, yet Arcadio somehow managed to balance in this tree and feast on papayas without one.
These monkeys are resting after a hardcore play bout on this Bursura log. The Bursura is also known as the "tourist tree" since it looks like a sunburned tourist with peeling skin.
We've had quite a few babies born recently. When they are newborns, capuchins have grey fur and look a little rat-like. As they get older they lose the grey and develop the characteristic black and white fur. This is Camille and baby Calyx. Welcome to the world Calyx!
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