A slim, long-limbed baboon with a warm, golden-brown coat that gives it its name. It lives in East Africa, in countries like Tanzania, Kenya, and parts of Mozambique, usually in open woodland, savanna, and bushy grassland where there are scattered trees to climb and sleep in. Compared with some other baboons, it looks quite “leggy” and light-built, with a narrow body and long arms and legs made for walking and running over open ground. Its fur is yellowish to olive on the back and sides, lighter on the belly, and the face is hairless and dark, with a long dog-like muzzle.

Males are larger than females and have heavier shoulders and longer canine teeth, but they don’t have big shaggy manes like hamadryas or Guinea baboons, so a troop of yellow baboons looks fairly sleek overall. Their tails have that classic baboon shape: they go up at the base and then curve down, so when a group walks away, you see a line of bent tails and golden backs.

Yellow baboons are very social and live in mixed troops that can include dozens of animals—many adult males, many females, and all their youngsters together. Inside these big groups are tighter family webs. Females usually stay in the troop they were born into, forming lifelong bonds with mothers, sisters, and daughters. Males leave their birth troop when they grow up and slowly work their way into a new one, first hanging around the edges and then building friendships to become fully accepted. Grooming is a huge part of their daily life: they spend long stretches picking through each other’s fur, looking for dirt and parasites, but also building trust and calming tension. Friends groom each other more, and nervous animals often ask higher-ranking baboons for a grooming “peace deal” after a disagreement.

Distribution

Country

Population est.

Status

Year

Comments

Ethiopia

2020

Kenya

2020

Malawi

2020

Mozambique

2020

Somalia

2020

Tanzania

2020

Zambia

2020