The Diet of the Japanese Macaque

Japanese macaques inhabit three of the four main islands of Japan--Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu--and are the most northerly wild, non-human primate species. Feeding habits vary greatly across the population, depending on weather and climate differences. Macaques are killed, sometimes in large numbers by farmers because of the damage they can cause to crops. In 1998 the annual cull exceeded 10,000 macaques, which was a tenth of the population.

  1. Seasonality

    • Japanese macaques are seasonal foragers. The northern parts of Japan inhabited by the macaques experiences extreme seasonal temperature changes and the winter is very harsh. During the winter, the northern macaques only receive an estimated 38 percent of their protein requirements and 33 percent of their calorific requirement. These animals eat excessive amounts during the remainder of the year to gain fat stores to survive the winter. Macaques living in more temperate climates still vary their diet seasonally according to what is easily available.

    Fruit

    • When available, fruit is usually the primary food for macaques. Macaques will eat any available fruit. Southern-dwelling macaques have access to some form of fruit all year round.

    Bark and Roots

    • Northern macaques mainly eat bark and buds and roots during the winter months, and have to rely on fat stores to sustain themselves, as there are not enough nutrients in bark.

    Nuts and Seeds

    • Nuts and seeds provide macaques with a valuable source of additional protein, nutrients and fats, and are another seasonal element of their diets.

    Small Creatures

    • Insects and invertebrates such as spiders are consumed by macaques to further supplement their primary diet of fruit. Small lizards, fish and crabs may also be eaten when other food is scarce.