Foa's red colobus
Foa's red colobus (Piliocolobus foai) or the Central African red colobus, is a species of red colobus monkey found in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.[1]
Foa's red colobus[1][2] | |
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Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Mammalia |
Order: | Primates |
Suborder: | Haplorhini |
Infraorder: | Simiiformes |
Family: | Cercopithecidae |
Genus: | Piliocolobus |
Species: | P. foai |
Binomial name | |
Piliocolobus foai (de Pousargues, 1899) | |
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Foa's red colobus range shown in pink |
Taxonomy
Several other species of red colobus were formerly considered subspecies of Piliocolobus foai by at least some authors but have since been elevated to full species. These include:[3][4][5]
- Lang's red colobus (P. langi)
- Oustalet's red colobus (P. oustaleti)
- Lomami red colobus (P. parmentieri)
- Tana River red colobus (P. rufomitratus)
- Semliki red colobus (P. semlikiensis)
- Ugandan red colobus (P. tephrosceles)
There is some speculation that Foa's red colobus is made of two formerly separate species, one originally from highlands and the other originally from lowlands, which interbred into a single species.[6]
Distribution
Foa's red colobus is found in the Democratic Republic of the Congo between the Lualaba, Lowa and Oso Rivers.[6]
Description
Foa's red colobus has long red and black fur on its back and head, with light underparts.[1][6] Males have a body length excluding tail of between 50 and 69 centimetres (20 and 27 in) with a tail that is between 62 and 67 centimetres (24 and 26 in) long.[6] Males typically weigh between 9 and 13 kilograms (20 and 29 lb) and females typically weigh between 7 and 9 kilograms (15 and 20 lb). It has smaller teeth than most other red colobus species.[6]
Behavior
Foa's red colobus is arboreal and diurnal.[1] It has a varied diet which includes leaves, buds, fruit and flowers.[1] It is frequently hunted for bushmeat.[6]
References
- Saj, Tania, L. (2016). Rowe, Noel; Myers, Marc (eds.). All the World's Primates. Pogonias Press. p. 535. ISBN 9781940496061.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
- "Piliocolobus foai". ITIS. Retrieved 2019-05-11.
- Rowe, Noel & Myers, Marc, eds. (2016). All the World's Primates. Pogonias Press. pp. 535–547. ISBN 9781940496061.
- "Piliocolobus". ASM Mammal Diversity Database. Retrieved 2019-05-11.
- Oates, John & Ting, Nelson (2015). "Conservation consequences of unstable taxonomies: The case of the red colobus monkeys". In Behie, Allison M. & Oxenham, Mark F. (ed.). Taxonomic Tapestries (PDF). Australian National University Press. pp. 321–343. ISBN 9781925022360. Retrieved 2019-05-11.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
- Zinner, D.; Fickenscher, G.H. & Roos, C. (2013). Mittermeier, Russell A.; Rylands, Anthony B. & Wilson, Don E. (eds.). Handbook of the Mammals of the World: Volume 3, Primates. Lynx. p. 710. ISBN 978-8496553897.