Rare Amazonian monkey sees the light of dawn for first time in 80 years!

Image courtesy: National Geographic/Twitter

New Delhi: In 1956, a team undertook an expedition to the Brazil rainforests to seek out a rare, mysterious species of monkeys – the Vanzolini saki. Unfortunately, however, they only encountered dead monkeys.

80 years later, during a recent trek this month, Laura Marsh, director of the Global Conservation Institute and a renowned saki expert, took it upon herself to go in search of a saki after identifying five new species of the monkeys in 2014.

To her excitement, the elusive primate that was first documented in the year 1936, showed itself to her. The saki expert told National Geographic: "I was trembling and so excited I could barely take a picture."

According to the Independent UK, Dr Marsh organised her "Houseboat Amazon" team to document the biodiversity in the region near Brazil's border with Peru – but with a special focus on finding the Vanzolini saki.

The Vanzolini bald-faced saki has shaggy black hair and distinctive golden legs. It was spotted running among the trees on all fours.

Lacking the prehensile tail of other monkeys, it moves more like a cat, Dr Marsh told National Geographic.