Barbary Ape, tailless monkey whose body is about 61 cm (about 24 in) long and covered with greenish-brown hair. It is the only macaque native to regions outside Asia and is abundant in some parts of North Africa. In the wild, the barbary ape lives in high cedars and oak forests of the Atlas mountains of Morocco and Algeria. The wild population is estimated at between 14,000 and 23,000.

The barbary ape occurred in Europe during the Pleistocene Epoch (2.5 million to 10,000 years ago) and is now the only monkey found there. This European population is probably introduced, however, and is restricted to about 30 animals, found on Gibraltar; when the population exceeds this number, the additional animals are shipped to zoos.