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Macaques are a genus of Old World monkeys that are native to Asia, North Africa, and Gibraltar; they have been introduced to the wild in other places by humans.

The rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta) is native in South Asia, East Asia, and the northern parts of Southeast Asia. The rhesus macaque became a model scientific research organism in the 20th century, and became famous for being the first monkeys and apes to be launched into space in the 1950s. There are 22 other macaque species, most of which are also well studied.