Will Primates Eat Meat?

Most primates eat meat rarely, if at all, but meat sometimes provides substantial immediate energy and protein gains. The main importance of meat is probably as a source of vitamins, minerals, and micronutrients.

What kind of primates eat meat?

Frogs and small lizards make ideal foods for such diminutive primates and are also enjoyed by squirrel monkeys, blue monkeys and all the Old World Cercopithecines — vervet monkeys, macaques and mandrills. Meanwhile, baboons, capuchins and chimpanzees are the most voracious meat-eaters of all.

Are any monkeys carnivorous?

In the wild, most monkeys are omnivorous, which means they eat both trees and meat. And all monkeys eat about the same thing. Depending on their habitat, things may change, but all monkeys eat fruits, leaves, seeds, nuts, flowers, vegetables, and insects.