Japanese macaque Japanese macaque The Japanese macaque (; "Macaca fuscata"), also known as the snow monkey, is a terrestrial Old World monkey species that is native to Japan. They get their name "snow monkey" because they live in areas where snow covers the ground for months each year – no other nonhuman primate is more northern-living, nor lives in a colder climate. Individuals have brown-grey fur, red faces, and short tails. Two subspecies are known. In Japan, the species is known as Nihonzaru (ニホンザル, a combination of "Nihon" 日本 "Japan" + "saru" 猿 "monkey") to distinguish it from other primates, but the
Japanese macaque the winter to warm up. The Japanese macaque is omnivorous and eats a variety of foods. Over 213 species of plants are included on the macaque's diet. It also eats insects, bark, and soil. On Yakushima Island, fruit, mature leaves, and fallen seeds are primarily eaten. The macaque also eats fungi, ferns, invertebrates, and other parts of plants. In addition, on Yakushima, their diets vary seasonally with fruits being eaten in the summer and herbs being eaten in the winter. Further north, macaques mostly eat foods such as fruit and nuts to store fat for the winter, when food is