These monkeys vary in colour from light brown to mustard yellow to black. They have a patch of black fur on the top of their head and black sideburns.Their shoulders and underside are lighter than the rest of their body. Above their ears they have black tufts of fur, giving the species one of its common names, tufted capuchin monkey. They have a long prehensile (grasping) tail, and this species is the only one known to carry their tail in a tight coil.