Miller's Grizzled Langurs, thought to be extinct, have been rediscovered

More good news heading our way. Another primate who was thought to be extinct has now been rediscovered in the jungles of Borneo. Published in the latest edition of American Journal of Primatology, the Miller's Grizzled Langur (Presbytis hosei carnicrus) was rediscovered in Wehea Forest, an area outside of its known range. Thought to have gone extinct as early as 2004, subsequent expedition in 2008 in search of P.h. carnicrus was to no avail, supporting the hypothesis that this species had went extinct.

There was virtually no photographs of Miller's Grizzled Langurs except from museum sketches.
Illustration by Stephen Nash, from Mammals' Planet.

Call it the luck of the draw. The scientific team who photographed these langurs initially set up camera traps to take pictures of clouded leopards, orangutans and other critter that congregate on salt licks. Then they discovered that the camera traps had taken photos of langurs that they have never seen before. Until now, there was no photograph of this species ever in existence; only images from museum sketches. Based on these museum sketches, the team later confirmed that the langurs from the photos are indeed P. h. carnicrus.

Brent Loken, one of the lead researchers, was excited about this rediscovery, "We were all pretty ecstatic. The fact that, wow, this monkey still lives, and also that it's in Wehea ... While our finding confirms the monkey still exists in East Kalimantan, there is a good chance that it remains one of the world's most endangered primates".

A Miller's Grizzled Langur. Photo by Eric Fell, from EurekAlert!

A Miller's Grizzled Langur. Photo by Eric Fell, from EurekAlert!

 A video from Scientific American shows time-lapse photos of these langurs at the salt licks.

 For more, read:

'Extinct' monkey rediscovered in Borneo by new expedition on EurekAlert!

'Extinct' monkey rediscovered in Indonesia jungle on The Guardian

Extremely Rare Primate, Believed Nearly Extinct, Discovered in Remote Borneo Forest on Planet Save.
Nearly Extinct Primate Rediscovered in Borneo [Video] on Scientific American

The paper, titled "Discovery of Miller’s Grizzled Langur (Presbytis hosei canicrus) in Wehea Forest confirms the continued existence and extends known geographical range of an endangered primate" is supposed to have went live but I couldn't find it. I will update this page with a URL for the paper once it's available.

Wordless Wednesday

Rhinopithecus strykeri: Hunted and eaten by locals

With the announcement of the newly discovered Rhinopithecus strykeri yesterday, we were only given a glimpse of this new species through an illustration and a computer modified image (Photoshopped none the less). I bet everyone was wondering why aren't there any pictures of these snub-nosed monkeys.

Ponder no more. Here's a photo from National Geographic showing local hunters with a dead R. strykeri that's about to be dinner (photo by Ngwe Lwin). The researchers (Geissmann et al., 2010) were not able to procure a photo of any live R. strykeri. Supposedly, they captured some wild ones but they had escaped before pictures were taken. R. strykeri are threatened by hunting and habitat destruction due to logging.

Reference:
Geissmann. T, Lwin. G, Aung. S, Naing Aung. T, Aung. Z M, Hla. T, Grindley. M, Momber. F, “A new species of Snub-nosed monkey, Genus Rhinopithecus Milne-Edwards, 1872 (Primates, Colobianae), From Northern Kachin State, Northeastern Myanmar”, American Journal of Primatology, Wiley-Blackwell, October 2010, DOI: 10.1002/ajp.20894

Edit: To request a copy of the paper by Geissmann et al. (2010), click here.

New snub-nosed monkey from Northern Myanmar: Rhinopithecus strykeri

As if fate is testing me, I just had a Facebook conversation yesterday about new species "discoveries" and how ethnocentric they are. I mean, really ... do you really think that until these new species are "discovered" by scientists, no one (even people that lives in the area) knew of these animals? Probably not. Using the word "discovered" to formally acknowledge a species seems antediluvian.

While there are currently no images of living specimens of this new species available Fauna & Flora International has commissioned an artists impression of the new species in its habitat, based on field sightings and a carcass of the newly discovered species. Image from Martin Aveling/Fauna & Flora International.

Anyway, a team of primatologists supposed discovered a new species of snub-nosed monkey in Northern Myanmar during their Hoolock Gibbon Status Review early this year. The new species was formally named  Rhinopithecus strykeri, after the President and Founder of the Arcus Foundation Jon Stryker. The locals do have a name for these snub-nosed monkeys. They call them "mey nwoah" or "monkey with an upturned face".

This primate reported has an upturned nose which, according to the locals, made them sneeze when it rains. Locals observed that to avoid getting rain water into their nose, R. strykeri would sit with their heads tucked in between their legs. Their pelage is entirely black except for a white tuft on their ears, chin beard and the perineal end. It has a relatively long tail, about 140% of its body. R. strykeri is the first species of the Rhinopithecus genus to be found in Myanmar. The other four species (R. roxellana, R. bieti, R. brelichi and R. avunculus) are found in China and Vietnam. R. strykeri's range is limited only to the Maw River area. There are estimated about 260 to 330 individuals of R. strykeri left in the wild, making them Critically Endangered according to IUCN.

Read more at New Snub-Nosed Monkey Discovered in Northern Myanmar.

Reference:

Geissmann, T. Lwin, G. Aung, S. Naing Aung, T. Aung, ZM. Hla, T. Grindley, M. Momber, F. A new species of Snub-nosed monkey, Genus Rhinopithecus Milne-Edwards, 1872 (Primates, Colobianae), From Northern Kachin State, Northeastern Myanmar. American Journal of Primatology, Wiley-Blackwell, October 2010, DOI: 10.1002/ajp.20894

New Gibbon Species Discovered

A new gibbon species have been discovered by researchers, led by Christian Roos, from the German Primate Center (Deutschen Primatenzentrums) and was published on Vietnamese Journal of Primatology. The northern buffed-cheeked gibbons (Nomascus annamensis) live in the rainforests of Annamite Mountains, situated around Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. The northern buffed-cheeked gibbons were once thought to be the yellow-cheeked gibbons (Nomascus gabriellae) but vocalization and genetic research prove that both are distinct species.

The northern buffed-cheeked gibbon males (left) have a black pelt that shimmers silver in sunlight. The chest is brownish in color and the cheeks are deep orange-golden. The crest is very prominent in males. Females (right) are orange-beige in color and lack the characteristic crest. Photo by Tilo Nadler, Endangered Primate Rescue Center, Vietnam.

"The discovery of a new species of ape is a minor sensation", Christian Roos warns. All crested gibbons (genus Nomascus) are either endangered or critically endangered with Hainan black crested gibbons (Nomascus nasutus hainanus) the most critically endangered, totaling to only 20 individuals. The sharp decline of Hylobatids can be contributed to illegal hunting and loss of habitat. “Knowledge of their biology and exact distributions is essential for effectively protecting the animals. Only if we know where which species is found and how many individuals there are can we start with serious conservation actions", Roos adds.

Comparison between the northern buffed-cheeked gibbon male (left) and the yellow-cheeked gibbon male (right). Photo of the yellow-cheeked gibbon from The Gibbon Network.

Comparison between the northern buffed-cheeked gibbon female (left) and the yellow-cheeked gibbon female (right). Photo of the yellow-cheeked gibbon from The Gibbon Network.

Gibbons are mostly monogamous, pair-bonding primates that are strongly territorial. These vocal displays or songs, usually a duet between a mated pair and sometimes their offspring, can be heard from as far as 1km away. Gibbon songs are territorial displays, perhaps if a gibbon can hear another gibbon sing then it is  encroaching a mated pair territory. Oh, in case you are wondering, gibbons do not have tails (they are apes).

For more about this discovery:
New ape species uncovered in Asia on Mongabay.com
New gibbon species discovered in Indochina on Informationsdienst Wissenschaft

Thinh, VN. Mootnick, AR. Thanh, VN. Nadler, T. Roos, C. A new species of crested gibbon, from the central Annamite mountain range. Vietnamese Journal of Primatology 1(4), 2010, 1-12.

P/S - Anyone able to find Thinh et al. (2010) publication online or the Vietnamese Journal of Primatology is not available online?

May 21st: Endangered Species Day

Tomorrow (May 21st, 2010), is Endangered Species Day. It is a day for people to learn about endangered animals and plants and also to share the importance of wildlife conservation with friends and family. I urge you to visit the National Wildlife Federation's website to learn more about Endangered Species Day.

The IUCN Red List does a great job highlighting endangered animals and plants, one species every day on their Species of the Day project which I've blogged about. You can get involved by following them on Twitter (@speciesoftheday) or including a IUCN Red List: Species of the Day button on your website (click here for the code).

If you are a resident of New York City, please tell City Hall to STOP the budget cuts on the Bronx Zoo, the New York Aquarium and other NYC cultural institutions by signing a petition online. Budget cuts are imperative in an economy like this but proposing budget cuts on institutions that play a big role in conservation definitely sends the wrong message. We need these institutions to educate the public about conservation and to provide a place for them to see animals that they otherwise would not have a chance to see up close. As evident from last year's severe budget cut on the Bronx Zoo, some exhibits were closed and its resident sent packing to another zoo including the endangered Arabian Oryx.

Cross River Gorilla, one of the most endangered primate species. 

So, join me as we celebrate Endangered Species Day tomorrow by raising awareness on wildlife conservation and learning more about endangered species. You can do so simply by either participating in any Endangered Species Day event (click here for a full list), spend a day with your family at a zoo or an aquarium, tweet about Endangered Species Day or even raise awareness through your Facebook profile.

Here is a (current) list of the world's 25 most endangered primates, by region:

Madagascar:

• Greater Bamboo Lemur (Prolemur simus)
• Gray-headed Lemur (Eulemur cinereiceps)
• Sclater’s Black Lemur/Blue-Eyed Black Lemur (Eulemur flavifrons)
• Northern sportive lemur (Lepilemur septentrionalis)
• Silky Sifaka (Propithecus candidus)

Africa:

• Rondo Dwarf Galago (Galagoides rondoensis)
• Roloway Guenon (Cercopithecus diana roloway)
• Tana River Red Colobus (Procolobus rufomitratus)
• Niger Delta Red Colobus Monkey (Procolobus epieni)
• Kipunji (Rungwecebus kipunji)
• Cross River Gorilla (Gorilla gorilla diehli)

Asia:

• Siau Island Tarsier (Tarsius tumpara)
• Javan Slow Loris (Nycticebus javanicus)
• Simakobu or Pig-Tailed Snub-Nose Langur (Simias concolor)
• Delacour’s Langur (Trachypithecus delacouri)
• Golden-headed Langur or Cat Ba Langur (Trachypithecus p. poliocephalus)
• Western Purple-faced Langur Trachypithecus (Semnopithecus vetulus nestor)
• Grey-shanked Douc Monkey (Pygathrix cinerea)
• Tonkin Snub-nosed Monkey (Rhinopithecus avunculus)
• Eastern Black Crested Gibbon (Nomascus nasutus)
• Western Hoolock Gibbon (Hoolock hoolock)
• Sumatran Orangutan (Pongo abelii)

Central and South America:

• Cotton-top Tamarin (Saguinus oedipus)
• Variegated or Brown Spider Monkey (Ateles hybridus)
• Peruvian Yellow-tailed Woolly Monkey (Oreonax flavicauda)

Primates in Peril: The World's 25 Most Endangered Primates (2008 - 2010) is a list compiled by the Primate Specialist Group of IUCN’s Species Survival Commission (SSC) and the International Primatological Society (IPS), in collaboration with Conservation International (CI).

Two Rare Primates From China and Vietnam Given a Second Chance

Two new protected areas were designated in China and Vietnam recently to protect two of the world's most endangered primates by Fauna and Flora International (FFI). The Tonkin snub nosed monkey (Rhinopithecus avunculus), found only in Vietnam, numbers about only 200 individuals in the wild while the eastern black crested gibbon or cao vit gibbon (Nomascus nasutus), second most endangered primate in the world, numbers only just 110 individuals. Both species are listed as "critically endangered" in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List. The Tonkin snub nosed monkeys were thought to be extinct until a small population was rediscovered in the early 1980s.

Read more about the Tonkin snub nosed monkeys, cao vit gibbons and the new nature reserves from Wildlife Extra.

Male (left) and female (right) cao vit gibbons. Photo from Fauna and Flora International.

The Tonkin snub nosed monkey. Photo from Fauna and Flora International.