howler monkey

noun

: any of a genus (Alouatta) of South and Central American monkeys that have a long prehensile tail and enlargement of the hyoid bone and expansion of the larynx enabling them to make loud howling noises

Illustration of howler monkey

Examples of howler monkey in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That same dome of heat had been roasting Mexico since the beginning of May, breaking records and causing howler monkeys and birds to drop from trees after dying of heat stroke and dehydration. —Andrea Thompson, Scientific American, 19 June 2024

Leatherback turtles nest on Playa Grande, while howler monkeys and crocodiles call Tamarindo Wildlife Refuge home. —Lindsay Cohn, Travel + Leisure, 17 June 2024

This isn’t the first time this species of howler monkeys has been in trouble. —Manuela Andreoni, New York Times, 22 May 2024

And beyond birds, visitors can also spot mammals like the mantled howler monkey and kinkajou, while evidence of jaguars and other cats has been discovered in the recent past via Mount Totumas Cloud Forest’s trail camera system. —Jared Ranahan, Forbes, 8 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1932, in the meaning defined above