| Niger Delta red colobus | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Primates |
| Suborder: | Haplorhini |
| Infraorder: | Simiiformes |
| Family: | Cercopithecidae |
| Genus: | Piliocolobus |
| Species: | P. epieni |
| Binomial name | |
| Piliocolobus epieni | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
The Niger Delta red colobus (Piliocolobus epieni) is a critically endangered species of colobus monkey endemic to the western part of the Niger Delta. It is threatened by hunting and habitat loss.
From the time it first became known to science (in 1993) until 2007 or 2008, it was considered a subspecies of the western red colobus (Procolobus badius) and more recently Pennant's colobus (Procolobus pennantii), and its trinomial name was Procolobus badius epieni or Procolobus pennantii epieni. [1] [3] Colin Groves recognized the Niger Delta red colobus as a full species in 2007, although Groves considered all the red colobus monkeys, including the Niger Delta red colobus to be in the genus Piliocolobus , rather than Procolobus (this nomenclature has been followed here). [4] However, other authors consider Piliocolobus to be a subgenus of Procolobus.
The Niger Delta red colobus is black on top from the head to the rump, becoming orange-brown on the sides and outer legs. The undersides and inner legs, and most of the arms are white. The hands and feet are black. The tail is red-brown on top and chestnut or maroon below, becoming darker towards the tip. It has white whiskers. [3] [4]
The Niger Delta red colobus is found only in the western part of the Niger Delta. [4] It is restricted to marsh forest, that is, forest with a high water table year round but no significant flooding. [3] It shares this habitat with several other primate species, including the Nigerian white-throated guenon (Cercopithecus erythrogaster pococki), the red-capped mangabey (Cercocebus torquatus), the putty-nosed monkey (Cercopithecus nictitans), the mona monkey (Cercopithecus mona), and maybe also the olive colobus (Procolobus verus). [3]
When it was first discovered, the Niger Delta red colobus was locally common but under some pressure from deforestation, especially logging of Hallea ledermannii , which is an important food tree for the monkey. [3] Since then, pressure from bushmeat hunting and logging has increased. [3] Red colobus monkeys generally appear to be particularly sensitive to hunting and habitat disturbance, hence concerns that the species may be on the verge of extinction. [3]
The Niger Delta red colobus was still found in the Edumanom Forest Reserve in 2008. [5] However, as of 2008, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) considers it critically endangered, due a reduction in population of more than 80% over the past 30 years largely caused by hunting and habitat loss. [1] In 2010, the Niger Delta red colobus was included in the list of The World’s 25 Most Endangered Primates, published by the IUCN and other organizations. [3]
The Zanzibar red colobus is a species of red colobus monkey endemic to Unguja, the main island of the Zanzibar Archipelago, off the coast of Tanzania. It is also known as Kirk's red colobus after Sir John Kirk, the British Resident of Zanzibar who first brought it to the attention of zoological science. It is now classified as an endangered species and in the mid-1990s was adopted as the flagship species for conservation in Zanzibar. The population is still decreasing, and conservationists are attempting to work with the local government to devise a proper, effective strategy to protect the population and habitat. Challenges include the species' habitat, which is limited to the archipelago. The species has been reclassified three times; it was previously in the genus Colobus, then in the genus Procolobus, and later in the genus Piliocolobus.
The white-throated guenon, also known as the red-bellied monkey and the red-bellied guenon, is a diurnal primate that lives on trees of rainforests or tropical areas of Nigeria and Benin.
Sclater's guenon, also known as Sclater's monkey and the Nigerian monkey, is an Old World monkey that was first described by Reginald Innes Pocock in 1904 and named after Philip Sclater. It is an arboreal and diurnal primate that lives in the forests of southern Nigeria. It should not be confused with the closely related species, the white-throated guenon, which occurs in Nigeria and Benin. Sclater's guenon was formerly classified as a subspecies of the red-eared guenon.
Red colobuses are Old World monkeys of the genus Piliocolobus. It was formerly considered a subgenus within the genus Procolobus, which is now restricted to the olive colobus. They are closely related to the black-and-white colobus monkeys, and some species are often found in groups with the blue monkey. The western red colobus is frequently hunted by the common chimpanzee.
Miss Waldron's red colobus is a species of the red colobus native to West Africa. It had previously been described as a subspecies of the western red colobus, P. badius. It has not been officially sighted since 1978 and was considered extinct in 2000. However, new evidence suggests that a very small number of these monkeys may be living in the southeast corner of Côte d'Ivoire. The IUCN Red List notes Miss Waldron's red colobus as critically endangered.
The western red colobus, also known as the bay red colobus, rust red colobus or Upper Guinea red colobus, is a species of Old World monkey in West African forests from Senegal to Ghana. All other species of red colobuses have formerly been considered subspecies of P. badius. The monkey is a frequent prey of the common chimpanzee. In 1994, western red colobus monkeys infected many chimpanzees with Ebola virus after being hunted and consumed by the chimps.
The black colobus, or satanic black colobus, is a species of Old World monkey belonging to the genus Colobus. The species is found in a small area of western central Africa. Black colobuses are large, completely covered with black fur, and like all other Colobus monkeys, do not have a thumb. The species has faced large declines in population due to habitat destruction and hunting by humans, and was consequently listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List in 1994.
Pennant's colobus or Pennant's red colobus is a species of tree-dwelling primate in the family Cercopithecidae. It is endemic to tropical Central Africa. Three subspecies have traditionally been recognised but its distribution is peculiarly disjunct and has been considered a biogeographical puzzle, with one population on the island of Bioko, a second in the Niger River Delta in southern Nigeria, and a third in east-central Republic of Congo. It is found in rainforests and marshy forests. It is threatened by habitat loss and hunting for bushmeat.
The Tana River red colobus, also called the eastern red colobus, is a highly endangered species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae. It is endemic to a narrow zone of gallery forest near the Tana River in southeastern Kenya.
The olive colobus monkey, also known as the green colobus or Van Beneden's colobus, is a species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae. Its English name refers to its dull olive upperparts. It is the smallest example of all colobine monkeys and is rarely observed in its natural habitat because of its cryptic coloration and secretive nature. It is found in the rain forests of West Africa, ranging from southern Sierra Leone to Nigeria. The IUCN Red List classifies the olive colobus as vulnerable, with the cause of its decline attributed to habitat loss and hunting. Though much of the land within the range of the olive colobus has been affected by human activities, it retains its ability to thrive in small degraded forest fragments.
Preuss's red colobus is a red colobus primate species endemic to the Cross-Sanaga Rivers ecoregion. An important population occurs in Korup National Park, Southwest Province, Cameroon, but the species' distribution is localized. The species is considered present in adjacent Cross River National Park - Oban Division in Nigeria and hunter reports suggest that few groups remain in Nkwende Hills and Nta Ali Forest Reserve in the broader Korup region. A population is also present in Ebo forest, Littoral Province of Cameroon.
Thollon's red colobus, also known as the Tshuapa red colobus, is a species of red colobus monkey from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and lower Republic of the Congo. It is found south of Congo River and west of Lomami River. It had once been considered a subspecies of the P. badius. It was recognised as a distinct species by Dandelot in 1974, and this was followed by Groves in 2001, while others have suggested it should be considered a subspecies of P. rufomitratus.
The Ugandan red colobus or ashy red colobus is an endangered species of red colobus monkey, recognised as a distinct species since 2001. There is disagreement however over taxonomy with many considering the Ugandan red colobus to be a subspecies. The Ugandan red colobus is an Old World monkey which is found in five different locations across Uganda and Tanzania.
The Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary in Cross River State in southern Nigeria covers 104 km2 (40 sq mi). The wildlife sanctuary was founded in 2000 to provide refuge for endangered animal species, including the Cross River gorilla, the Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee, the drill and the gray-necked rockfowl.
The World's 25 Most Endangered Primates is a list of highly endangered primate species selected and published by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Species Survival Commission (SSC) Primate Specialist Group (PSG), the International Primatological Society (IPS), Global Wildlife Conservation (GWC), and Bristol Zoological Society (BZS). The IUCN/SSC PSG worked with Conservation International (CI) to start the list in 2000, but in 2002, during the 19th Congress of the International Primatological Society, primatologists reviewed and debated the list, resulting in the 2002–2004 revision and the endorsement of the IPS. The publication was a joint project between the three conservation organizations until the 2012–2014 list when BZS was added as a publisher. The 2018–2020 list was the first time Conservation International was not among the publishers, replaced instead by GWC. The list has been revised every two years following the biannual Congress of the IPS. Starting with the 2004–2006 report, the title changed to "Primates in Peril: The World's 25 Most Endangered Primates". That same year, the list began to provide information about each species, including their conservation status and the threats they face in the wild. The species text is written in collaboration with experts from the field, with 60 people contributing to the 2006–2008 report and 85 people contributing to the 2008–2010 report. The 2004–2006 and 2006–2008 reports were published in the IUCN/SSC PSG journal Primate Conservation,, since then they have been published as independent publications.
Bouvier's red colobus is a species of colobus monkey rediscovered in the Republic of the Congo in 2015, after four decades without a confirmed sighting.
Temminck's red colobus is a type of red colobus monkey from the Gambia, Casamance, Guinea-Bissau and northwestern Guinea. It has historically been regarded as a subspecies of the western red colobus, and the Integrated Taxonomic Information System and Mammal Diversity Database both maintain this classification, but many less recent taxonomies classify it as a separate species.
The Niger Delta swamp forests is a tropical moist forest ecoregion in southern Nigeria. It consists of freshwater swamp forests in the Niger Delta of the Niger River. This swamp forest is the second largest in Africa after the Congolian swamp forests. Although there are large cities just outside the ecoregion, the area has been relatively isolated by the difficulty of building roads across the swamps, although this is changing with development of oil and logging industries. Scientific surveys have only begun in recent years, and new species were being identified into the 1990s. Crude oil exploration and pollution has been a threat to forests in the Niger Delta region.
Rachel Ashegbofe Ikemeh is a Nigerian conservationist who won a Whitley award in 2020. She is the director of South West and Niger Delta Forest Project, a conservation program for endangered primates as the Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee, Red colobus monkey(Piliocolobus epieni) and Benin potto in the respective regions. She has actively been in Nigeria conservation for the past 15 years.
