4 Ruthmery Pillco Huarcaya is a scientist from Universidad Nacional San Antonio Abad del Cusco Cusco Peru studying woolly monkey behavior SCIENCE STAKEOUT IN THE LEAFY RAIN FOREST CANOPY HIGH OVERHEAD MORE THAN A DOZEN WOOLLY MONKEYS ARE SPREAD OUT ALONG THE BRANCHES Nearly 100 feet 30 m below on the forest floor Ruthmery Pillco Huarcaya watches them intently through her binoculars
5 Although she doesn't want to miss anything Ruthmery lowers the binoculars to wipe the sweat from her eyes It's only six o clock in the morning and the air is already steamy It's always hot in this part of the rain forest in Peru's Manú Biosphere Reserve a protected conservation area next to Manú National Park This aerial view shows Manú National Park Along with Manú Biosphere Reserve the area is home to animals and plants found nowhere else on Earth
6 Manú National Park where Ruthmery is conducting her research is one of the largest parks in South America covering 5,918 square miles 15,328 sq km The Manú Biosphere Reserve covers another 992 square miles 2,570 sq km Alongside them is the Manú Cultural Zone where people live but the land and wildlife are still protected Together these conservation areas cover a large area of land but there's more to the park than the area it covers on the ground Lima PERU AMAZON BASIN MANU BIOSPHERE RESERVE Rio Manu Area of detail map Cocha Salvación Cocha Chocongo Limonal MANÚ NATIONAL PARK SOUTH AMERICA Boca Manu MANU CULTURAL ZONE Shintuya MANU Salvación RESERVE Atalaya WILDLIFE Pilcopata CENTER Manú National Park Manú Biosphere Reserve Manú Cultural Zone Manú Reserve Wildlife Center Andes Mountains International border River Road Cusco Manú City Park ranger Port Tres Cruces PERU Cusco PERU'S MANU NATIONAL PARK and RESERVE A network of rivers running through the park and reserve drains the high mountains These rivers are key to keeping the forest healthy
7 Woolly monkeys live in groups that average around twenty adults and young adults though a large group may include as many as forty monkeys Manú National Park is a sprawling lowland rain forest in the Amazon basin that climbs the eastern side of the Andes Mountains There up as high as nearly 13,000 feet 3,962 m above sea level the rain forest becomes cloud forest The cloud forest is an extraordinary part of the world because while it receives a lot of rainfall the mountain elevation causes the air to be cool This means the tree canopy is constantly swallowed up in clouds while close to the ground the air is full of misty fog This unique environment is home to plants and animals found nowhere else on Earth This combination of rain forest and cloud forest is home to the woolly monkeys Ruthmery is studying Since these monkeys spend nearly all of their time high up in treetops their lives have been largely a mystery However thanks to determined scientists such as Ruthmery and some new technology the mysteries are being solved The woolly monkey's secrets can finally be revealed
