Cat-ba langur
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Cat Ba Langur ( Trachypithecus poliocephalus ) |
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| Trachypithecus poliocephalus | ||||||||||||
| ( Trouessart , 1911) |
The Cat-Ba-Langur ( Trachypithecus poliocephalus , syn .: Semnopithecus poliocephalus ), also called Goldkopfangur , is a species of primate from the group of the Schlankaffen (Presbytini). It occurs only on the island of Cát Bà in Halong Bay in northern Vietnam .
features
Cat-ba langurs reach a head-trunk length of 49 to 59 (males) or 49 to 55 centimeters (females), the tail is 82 to 92 centimeters, significantly longer than the body. Males are larger than females, reaching 8 to 9.5 kilograms, while females weigh around 6.7 to 8 kilograms. They are slender primates with slender hands and feet, the thumbs are greatly reduced in size. The back hair can be up to 18 cm long and forms a kind of cape.
The fur of these primates is dark chocolate brown in the rear area, the head and shoulder region contrast strongly and are colored golden brown to yellow white. On the head there is a bright yellowish tinge of hair, the face is dark. A gray, approximately 5 cm wide, V-shaped band runs from the thighs to the rear of the back. The hair on this band is dark brown, like the rest of the back, but its tips are silvery gray. Small yellow spots on the hands and feet are the same shade as the shoulders. The pubic area of the females is light yellowish or white. All hairless skin areas, i.e. face, ears, hands and feet, are black.
Newborns have light yellow-orange fur. After nine months, the back and tail will darken and the band on the back and thighs will begin to show a silver gray. With advancing age, the fur becomes increasingly darker and at an age of 1.5 to 2 years the animals can hardly be distinguished from adults.
habitat
Cat-ba langurs live in subtropical forests that grow on karst hills . The region is characterized by the monsoons with pronounced rainy and dry seasons. The cool dry season extends from November to March, the rainy season from May to September with the heaviest monsoon rains in July and August. The mean annual rainfall is around 1800 mm, in the dry season the temperature can drop to 0 ° C.
Way of life
Cat-ba langurs usually stay in trees, but also go to the ground. They are skilled climbers who mainly move around on four legs. They are active during the day and at twilight, when they go to sleep they retreat to karst caves - especially in the cooler seasons and in bad weather. They live in groups of five to nine animals. These are harem groups that usually consist of a male, one or more females and their offspring. Cat-ba langurs feed mainly on leaves, and young shoots, fruits, flowers and bark are also eaten. So far, 89 plants from 42 families have been identified that the Cat-Ba-Langurs eat. The animals rest for around two thirds of the day and eat 15% of the time. Young animals spend two thirds of the day playing and other social activities.
Danger
Cat-ba langurs are among the rarest primates and are listed by the IUCN as Critically Endangered. Of the roughly 2,500 to 2,800 animals that were still alive in the 1960s, the total population fell to just 52 to 54 at the beginning of 2000. In June 2008 the population numbered 764 to 864 individuals.
The habitat of the Cat Ba langur is a 98 km² large national park of Vietnam and since the late 1990s, also a biosphere reserve and World Heritage Site of UNESCO . Nevertheless, this animal species is still very much endangered by poaching due to the belief in the healing effects of ground bones or dried organs of the animals as taught in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and by the expanding tourism in the region . Thanks to a project started in October 2000 in cooperation with the Vietnamese government, the population is slowly starting to recover. The Cat Ba Langur Conservation Project was created in cooperation with the Allwetterzoo Münster and the Zoological Society for Species and Population Protection (ZGAP). The animals currently live together in groups that are too small to be able to form a stable population. The minimum number of individuals to ensure the survival of the species would be 200. According to Roswitha Stenke, the German project manager on Cat Ba, this number can be reached again after 15 to 20 years at the earliest by 2008. Since the start of the project in 2001, the number of animals has increased to over 70 and numerous young animals have been born.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e D. Zinner, GH Fickenscher & C. Roos: Family Cercopithecidae (Old World monkeys). Pages 748-749 in Russell A. Mittermeier , Anthony B. Rylands & Don E. Wilson : Handbook of the Mammals of the World: Primates: 3rd ISBN 978-8496553897
- ↑ trachypithecus poliocephalus in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2008. Posted by:. Bleisch, B., Xuan Canh, L. Covert, B. & Yongcheng, 2008. Retrieved on December 12, 2018.
- ↑ Official website about the Cat Ba Langur Conservation Project, in German
- ↑ Project for the rescue of the gold-headed langur. WGA, accessed November 30, 2015 .