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Red-shanked douc

Encyclopedia of Life · EOL (see source)

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Red-shanked douc

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Also known as Pygathrix nemaeus

species of mammal

Species

Critically Endangered

Maximum longevity: 26 years (captivity)

via IUCN

~16 min read

Encyclopedic overview

The red-shanked douc (Pygathrix nemaeus) is an arboreal and diurnal Old World monkey belonging to the Colobinae subfamily. They are endemic to Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia. They are known for their bright colors and exhibit sexual dimorphism through their body size. The species has been declared critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, with the main threats being: hunting, habitat loss and pet trade. They are one of three species in the genus Pygathrix, the other two being the black-shanked (P. nigripes) and gray-shanked (P. cinerea) doucs.

Red-shanked doucs live in fission-fusion, multilevel societies that have a mean of 18 individuals per band. They are folivorous and consume mainly Acacia pruinescens, Ficus racemosa, Millettia nigrescens, Zanthoxylum avicennae and Castanopsis ceratacantha. Their four-chambered stomachs that allow for bacterial fermentation help them with their high-fiber diet.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Red-shanked douc” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

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