Lion tailed macaque

From Wild India

(Macaca silenus)

Lion-tailed Macaque at Anamalais - Photo by Ramki
Conservation status: Endangered

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Order:	Primates
Family:	Cercopithecidae
Genus:	Macaca
Species:	M. silenus

Binomial name

Macaca silenus
(Linnaeus, 1758)

The Lion-tailed Macaque (Macaca silenus) is an Old World monkey that lives only in Western ghats of southwest India.

Table of contents

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Introduction

Of all the macaque species, the lion-tailed macaque (Macaca silenus), named for its lion-like tail, is the most threatened. Macaca silenus seems unable to adapt to close proximity to humankind, preferring to live high in the treetops, rarely venturing down to the forest floor. The main threat to the lion-tailed macaque is the destruction of its habitat, occasional persecution as crop pests, as well as its unfortunate resemblance to Nilgiri langurs (Trachypithecus johnii) which are considered to have medicinal value.

The lion-tailed macaque also has the distinction of being one of the only species of macaque that are arboreal, which means, as earlier mentioned, that they prefer to spend their time in the tops of trees, usually of the evergreen variety in more mature forests, though they will live in semi evergreen broadleaf monsoon forests, and sometimes forests near a river.

Lion-tailed Macaques are pure rain forest dwellers. They are good climbers and spend a majority of their life in the trees. Unlike other macaques, they avoid humans. In their group behavior they are much like other macaques: they live in hierarchical groups of usually ten to twenty animals, which consist of some males and many females. They are territorial animals, defending their area first with loud crys towards the invading troops. If this proves fruitless, they brawl aggressively.

Lion-tailed Macaques nourish themselves primarily of fruits, but also eat leaves, buds, insects and small vertebrates.

Lion-tailed Macaques rank among the rarest and most threatened primates. According to estimations of the IUCN, only approximately 2,500 of these animals lives scattered over several areas in southwest India. The destruction of their habitat and the fact that they avoid human proximity, has led to the drastic decrease of their population. Many zoos take part in breeding programs which help to secure the survival of this species.

The lion-tailed macaque seems to be unable to adapt to human settlement; for example, it apparently doesn't travel through plantations or use them as habitat.

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Stats

Photo by Ramki

Weight:

The lion-tailed macaque weighs 7 - 15 kg (15 - 33 lb).

Habitat:

The lion-tailed macaque is found in tropical evergreen forests of both the Western Ghats and Sri Lanka Biodiversity Hotspot (Cons. Intl. 2005) and the Western Ghats Moist Forests Global 200 Ecoregion. (Olson & Dinerstein 1998, Olson & Dinerstein 1999)

Age to Maturity:

5 years (female); 8 years (male).

Gestation Period:

Gestation in all macaques is about 5.5 months.

Diet:

The lion-tailed macaque is omnivorous.

Behavior:

The lion-tailed macaque is mainly arboreal, although it does occasionally descend to the ground. All macaques are primarily diurnal.

Social Organization:

Groups of lion-tailed macaques range from 4 - 34 individuals. They usually contain about 10 - 20 individuals, including 1 - 3 adult males.

Density:

A population density of 0.25 individuals/sq km (0.65 individuals/sq mi) has been reported.

Range:

Estimated group range: 1 - 2 sq km (2.6 - 5.2 sq mi) over a 1 - 2 month period; 5 sq km (13 sq mi) over a year.
One group had a core area of 300 hectares (750 acres) that was rarely entered by other groups.

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Local Names

Singalika (Kannada}, Nelli manthi, Singhawalan, Neelan (Malayalam), Arakkan, Singaval manthi (Tamil)

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Threats

Lion-tailed macaques are increasingly rare, mainly as a result of the destruction of their forest home. Only 1% of the original habitat remains today due to widespread deforestation for timber, agriculture and development. This species persists in isolated pockets of remaining forest, which can lead to inbreeding depression, thus further threatening their precarious status. Additional threats come from hunting; they may be persecuted as crop pests and are often mistaken for Nilgiri langurs (Trachypithecus johnii) whose meat is believed to have medicinal properties.

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Conservation

This species is the most endangered macaque in the world. International trade is banned by their listing on Appendix I of the International Convention on Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) and they are also protected by Indian law.

K. Ullas Karanth, undertook a detailed and systematic survey of the distribution of the endangered Lion Tailed Macaque in Karnataka during 1983-84 with support from Government of Karnataka. He observed that suitable and extensive rainforest habitat for Lion-tailed Macaque existed in Kudremukh and that the tract probably harbored the largest contiguous population of lion tailed macaques in the Western Ghats. He further suggested that Lion Tailed Macaques could be effectively used as a 'flagship' species to conserve the entire biotic community in the region and prepared a conservation plan for survival of wild population of Lion Tailed Macaques in the region delineating the present national park area as a proposed nature reserve. Based on his report, the Karnataka State Wildlife Advisory Board suggested to the Government that Kudremukh National Park be created. Subsequently, the first notification of the Kudremukh National Park was issued.

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