The tropical islands throughout the jungle paths at Xcaret eco theme park in Mexico are specially occupied by small animals and local fauna, such as members of the ferret family and two species of monkeys native of Quintana Roo. This is a great place to stop and admire the acrobatic feats of the graceful and captivating spider monkeys in Xcaret.

They are commonly referred as spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) due to their long bodies, lanky arms and a strong tail that they use as their fifth extremity and enable them to move from tree to tree. Spider monkeys in Mexico gather in groups of 10 to 30 animals and they can react defensively to intimidate potential enemies.

• Howler Monkeys

A howler monkey may appear to be an animal hard to find in the lush evergreen forests, due to the fact that it enjoys hiding in the higher reaches of the canopy. Even so, a howler monkey can be located easily by its loud roar that reaches as far as a mile. As its name suggests, howler monkeys have a very distinctive communication system through sounds, calls and cries which is an important part of their social behavior.

Both howler monkeys and spider monkeys are species in danger of extinction which are protected in Xcaret.