Two Howling Howlers
-- Black Howler Monkeys (1997)
Acrylic on
illustration board
5" x 7"
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most of the American tropics one of the six species of howler
monkey is in evidence. An area from the source of the Parnaiba
River in central Brazil down to northeastern Argentina is the
home of the black howler (Alouatta caraya). Only the male
of the species is black, and these two females show the blond
pelage that characterizes their sex. The most distinctive feature
of these rather languorous leaf eaters is the long, plaintive
croaking roar emitted by both sexes, though that of the male
is louder and deeper. This call, which under good conditions
can be heard from three miles away, serves a number of social
functions and to my ear is a sound emblematic of the neotropical
rainforests. Its mournful timbre is at once profoundly sad and
pacifying, and I try to convey some of that sense in this painting. |
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