Mentawai langur

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Mentawai langur [1]
CITES Appendix I (CITES) [3]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Primates
Suborder: Haplorhini
Infraorder: Simiiformes
Family: Cercopithecidae
Genus: Presbytis
Species:
P. potenziani
Binomial name
Presbytis potenziani
(Bonaparte, 1856)
Mentawai Langur area.png
Mentawai langur range

The Mentawai langur (Presbytis potenziani) is a species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae. It is endemic to the Mentawai Islands in Indonesia. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry forests. [2] The Siberut langur (P. siberu) was formerly considered a subspecies of the Mentawai langur. [4] [5]

Contents

Description

Mentawai langur infants are born with a white pelage. After two to three weeks, the pelage begins to darken and the face becomes darkly pigmented. This change of coloration begins in the dorsal midline and head and ends laterally. After three months, the belly and chest are dark reddish-brown, throat, cheeks, forehead and tip of tail are white and the rest of the body is jet black. Males are differentiated from females by having a white circumgenital patch of fur. [6] Mentawai langurs have a slender body with hind limbs longer than their forelimbs. [7]

Distribution and habitat

Mentawai langurs are endemic to the islands of Sipora, North Pagai, and South Pagai. [8] [9] [10] They inhabit primary and secondary forests dominated by dipterocarps. [11] The trees used by Presbytis potenziani as sleeping areas are typically 35 metres (115 ft) in height. [9] [11] The langurs sleep in the mid-upper levels of these trees above 20 metres (66 ft), where the canopy density is thickest, with the most common sites being in coconut groves. [11] [2] [7]

Behavior and diet

On average, groups of Mentawai langurs travel 540 metres (1,770 ft) each day. [11] [2] Heavy rainfall affects movement patterns light to moderate rainfall does not. The langurs move by quadrupedal running and climbing; they also leap in the mid and upper portions of the canopy and drop when nearer to the ground. [11] Home ranges vary from 11 to 40 hectares (27 to 99 acres). [7] The groups are not migrants.[ clarification needed ] [2] Their social organisation is variable: unimale-unifemale, unimale-multifemale, multimale-multifemale. [2]

Mentawai langurs spend more than 80% of their time resting and foraging and only a small portion traveling and conducting social behavior. Such extensive periods of resting and foraging are required for colobines that consume seeds, unripe fruits and leaves to support their digestion. [7] Adult males typically move away from the group in the early morning and give long calls. [11]

The langurs feed in the upper portion of the canopy. In some areas, their diet consists of 55% leaves, 32% fruit and seed and 13% other source of food such as flowers, bark, sap, and fungi. [11] but groups that forage in secondary forests have a diet of 70% fruits and seeds and up to 35% "climber" type vegetation.[ clarification needed ] [2] The niche breadth of Presbytis potenziani is 0.22, based on Levin's index. [7]

Conservation

The Mentawai langur is currently listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List. [2] Over the 36 years prior to 2021, the population is estimated to have declined by 80%. [2] The main threats to the monkeys are humans hunting for food and destruction of the habitat for agriculture. 25% of the hunting on Mentawai langur is by natives of central-south Siberut. [9] Recommendations to conserve the species include development of a biosphere reserve on Siberut Island, creation of a primate reserve on South Pagai Island and offshore islands, a survey of primates on Sipora Island, a captive breeding program to recover the endemic subspecies of Mentawai primates on the southern islands, and beginning a campaign in education and law enforcement to prevent hunting of Mentawai langurs. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gray langur</span> Genus of Old World monkeys

Gray langurs are Old World monkeys native to the Indian subcontinent constituting the genus Semnopithecus. Traditionally only one species Semnopithecus entellus was recognized, but since about 2001, additional species have been recognized. The taxonomy has been in flux, but currently eight species are recognized.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mentawai Islands Regency</span> Regency in West Sumatra, Indonesia

The Mentawai Islands Regency are a regency of West Sumatra Province which consists of a chain of about a hundred islands and islets approximately 150 kilometres off the western coast of Sumatra in Indonesia. They cover a land area of 6,033.76 km2 and had a population of 76,173 at the 2010 Census and 87,623 at the 2020 Census; the official estimate as at mid 2022 was 89,401 - comprising 46,431 males and 42,970 females. Siberut at 3,838.25 square kilometres is the largest of the islands. The other major islands are Sipura, North Pagai, and South Pagai. The islands lie off the Sumatran coast, across the Mentawai Strait. The indigenous inhabitants of the islands are known as the Mentawai people. The Mentawai Islands have become a noted destination for surfing, with over 40 boats offering surf charters to international guests.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colobinae</span> Subfamily of Old World monkeys

The Colobinae or leaf-eating monkeys are a subfamily of the Old World monkey family that includes 61 species in 11 genera, including the black-and-white colobus, the large-nosed proboscis monkey, and the gray langurs. Some classifications split the colobine monkeys into two tribes, while others split them into three groups. Both classifications put the three African genera Colobus, Piliocolobus, and Procolobus in one group; these genera are distinct in that they have stub thumbs. The various Asian genera are placed into another one or two groups. Analysis of mtDNA confirms the Asian species form two distinct groups, one of langurs and the other of the "odd-nosed" species, but are inconsistent as to the relationships of the gray langurs; some studies suggest that the gray langurs are not closely related to either of these groups, while others place them firmly within the langur group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kloss's gibbon</span> Species of ape

Kloss's gibbon, also known as the Mentawai gibbon, the bilou or dwarf siamang, is an endangered primate in the gibbon family, Hylobatidae. It is identifiable in that it is all black, resembling the siamang with its black fur, but is considerably smaller and lacks the siamang's distinctive throat pouch. Kloss's gibbon reaches a size 17 to 25 inches and weigh at most 13 pounds (6 kg). As is the case for all gibbons, they have long arms and no tail. Males and females are difficult to distinguish.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siberut</span> Island in Mentawai Islands Regency, West Sumatra Province, Indonesia

Siberut is the largest and northernmost of the Mentawai Islands, located 150 kilometres west of Sumatra in the Indian Ocean. It covers an area of 3,838.25 km2 including smaller offshore islands, and had a population of 35,091 at the 2010 Census and 40,220 at the 2020 Census. A part of Indonesia, the island is the most important home for the Mentawai people. The western half of the island was set aside as the Siberut National Park in 1993. Much of the island is covered with rainforest, but is subject to commercial logging.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Surili</span> Genus of south-east Asian monkeys

The surilis are a group of Old World monkeys in the genus Presbytis. They live in the Thai-Malay Peninsula, on Sumatra, Borneo, Java and smaller nearby islands. Besides surili, the common names for the monkeys in the genus also often use the terms "langur" or "leaf monkey."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pig-tailed langur</span> Species of Old World monkey

The pig-tailed langur, monotypic in genus Simias, is a large Old World monkey, endemic to several small islands off the coast of Sumatra in Indonesia. Its face is black, its fur is black-brown and it has a relatively short tail. It is a diurnal species, feeding in the rainforest canopy on leaves, and to a lesser extent, fruit and berries. Little is known of its natural history, but it is heavily hunted, its populations have been declining rapidly and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its conservation status as being "critically endangered". It has been included on a list of the World's 25 Most Endangered Primates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mentawai Islands rain forests</span> Terrestrial ecoregion in Indonesia

The Mentawai Islands rain forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion in Indonesia. It covers the Mentawai Islands, an archipelago in the Indian Ocean off the west coast of Sumatra. The islands have been separated from Sumatra since the mid-Pleistocene period, and their geographic isolation allowed the evolution of several endemic species, including 17 endemic mammals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siberut National Park</span> National park in indonesia

Siberut National Park comprises 1,905 km2 (47%) of the island of Siberut in the Mentawai Islands of West Sumatra, Indonesia. The whole island including the national park is part of the World Network of Biosphere Reserves.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pagai Island macaque</span> Species of Old World monkey

The Pagai Island macaque, also known as the Pagai macaque or Bokkoi, is an Old World monkey endemic to the Mentawai Islands off the west coast of Sumatra. It is listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List due to its ever-shrinking habitat. Macaca pagensis formerly included the overall darker Siberut macaque as a subspecies, but this arrangement is polyphyletic, leading to the two being classified as separate species. Both were formerly considered subspecies of the southern pig-tailed macaque.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cat Ba langur</span> The rarest monkey in Asia

The Cat Ba langur, also known as the golden-headed langur, is a critically endangered species of langur endemic to Cát Bà Island, Vietnam. It is among the rarest primates in the world, and possibly the rarest primate in Asia, with population size estimated at less than 70 individuals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phayre's leaf monkey</span> Species of Old World monkey

Phayre's leaf monkey, also known as Phayre's langur, is a species of Old World monkey native to South Asia and Southeast Asia, namely India, Bangladesh, and Myanmar. Populations from further east are now thought to belong to other species. It is listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List and is threatened by hunting and loss of habitat. The species epithet commemorates Arthur Purves Phayre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Javan surili</span> Species of Old World monkey

The Javan surili is a vulnerable species of Old World monkey endemic to the western half of Java, Indonesia, a biodiversity hotspot. Other common names by which it is known by include gray, grizzled or Sunda Island surili; grizzled or stripe-crested langur; Javan grizzled langur; grizzled, Java or Javan leaf monkey; langur gris.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raffles' banded langur</span> Species of primate in Malaysia and Singapore

The Raffles' banded langur, also known as the banded leaf monkey or banded surili, is a species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae. It is endemic to Singapore and southern Peninsular Malaysia. The species underwent taxonomic revisions in 2019 and 2020, in which two former subspecies were elevated to separate species. As a result, the Raffles' banded langur meets the criteria for being listed as critically endangered by the IUCN. It is mainly threatened by habitat loss.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maroon leaf monkey</span> Species of Old World monkey

The maroon langur, maroon leaf monkey, or red leaf monkey is a member of the family Cercopithecidae. It is found on the southeast Asian island of Borneo and the nearby smaller Karimata. P. rubicunda mostly live in forests at altitudes below 2,000 m. They feed on leaves, seeds, and fruits.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dusky leaf monkey</span> Species of Old World monkey

The dusky leaf monkey, also known as the spectacled langur, or the spectacled leaf monkey is a species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae. It is found in Peninsular Malaysia, Myanmar and Thailand, and can occasionally be found in Singapore. During the day, these small, folivorous primates divide in sub-groups and forage for vegetation and fruit throughout the tropical forests. According to the IUCN, the dusky leaf monkey's population is declining due to habitat loss, poaching, and anthropogenic land use, which prompted the IUCN to classify the species as endangered in 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Germain's langur</span> Species of Old World monkey

Germain's langur is a Old World monkey native to Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. The monkey was previously included in Trachypithecus cristatus and Trachypithecus villosus.

The mitered langur is a species of monkey in the family Cercopithecidae. It was formerly considered a subspecies of the Sumatran surili, Presbytis melalophos but genetic analysis revealed that these are separate species. The mitered langur is native to the island of Sumatra in Indonesia. It is listed as endangered by the IUCN due primarily to deforestation, and also due to animals taken for pets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siberut langur</span> Species of monkey

The Siberut langur is a species of monkey in the family Cercopithecidae. It was formerly considered a subspecies of the Mentawai langur, Presbytis potenziani but genetic analysis revealed that these are separate species. The Siberut langur is native to the island of Siberut in Indonesia. It is listed as endangered by the IUCN.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Miller's langur</span> Species of leaf monkey (mammal)

Miller's langur, also known as Miller's grizzled langur or Kutai grey langur, is a species of leaf monkey. It is endemic to East Kalimantan on the island of Borneo in Indonesia. It is one of the world's most endangered primates, and was at one time thought to be extinct, until it was rediscovered in 2012.

References

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