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Ruwenzori colobus

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Ruwenzori black-and-white colobus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Primates
Suborder: Haplorhini
Infraorder: Simiiformes
Family: Cercopithecidae
Genus: Colobus
Species:
Subspecies:
C. a. ruwenzorii[1]
Trinomial name
Colobus angolensis ruwenzorii[1]
Thomas, 1901

The Ruwenzori colobus (Colobus angolensis ruwenzorii), also known as Ruwenzori black-and-white colobus, is a subspecies of the Angola colobus.[1] This primate is distributed from the Afromontane forests of the Ruwenzori Mountains across the mountains in Burundi and Rwanda to the northern shore of Lake Tanganyika.[2]

Taxonomy

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In 1901, Oldfield Thomas described two skins of Ruwenzori colobus zoological specimens that were collected at the northwestern slopes of the Ruwenzori Mountains in Bwamba Country of western Uganda. Thomas considered it a species using the scientific name Colobus ruwenzorii.[3]

Characteristics

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The Ruwenzori colobus is black with hair on the shoulders between 23 and 33 cm (9.1 and 13.0 in) long. Its tail is also black and greyish-white at the end. It has white bushy tufts on the cheeks.[3] The white hair on the forehead forms a crest.[2]

Distribution and habitat

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The Ruwenzori colobus occurs at Lake Nabugabo and Rwenzori Mountains National Park in Uganda.[4] Troops of 300 to 400 individuals inhabit Rwanda's Nyungwe National Park.[5]

Some authors reports indicate that it perhaps also occurs in some Tanzanian regions.[6]

Ecology and behaviour

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The Ruwenzori colobus is a highly arboreal and acrobatic leaf-eater. Its diet consists of about two thirds of leaves and one third of fruit and seeds.[7]

Although all Colobus species are very sociable, they usually move on the troops of several hundred animals.[7]

References

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  1. ^ a b Groves, C. P. (2005). "Colobus angolensis ruwenzorii". In Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M. (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 168. ISBN 0-801-88221-4. OCLC 62265494.
  2. ^ a b Groves, C. P. (2007). "The taxonomic diversity of the Colobinae of Africa" (PDF). Journal of Anthropological Sciences. 85: 7−34.
  3. ^ a b Thomas, O. (1901). "On the more notable Mammals obtained by Sir Harry Johnston in the Uganda Protectorate". Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 2 (2): 85−90. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7998.1901.tb08165.x.
  4. ^ Arseneau-Robar, T. J. M.; Joyce, M. M.; Stead, S. M.; Teichroeb, J. A. (2018). "Proximity and grooming patterns reveal opposite-sex bonding in Rwenzori Angolan colobus monkeys (Colobus angolensis ruwenzorii)". Primates. 59 (3): 267–279. doi:10.1007/s10329-017-0643-6. PMID 29270880. S2CID 1413775.
  5. ^ Ministère des Terres, de l’Environnement, de l’Eau, des Forêts et des Mines (2005). "Conditions propres aux pays" (PDF). Communication Nationale Initiale relative à la Convention – Cadre des Nations Unies sur les Changements climatiques. Kigali, Rwanda: Republique du Rwanda. pp. 25–48.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  6. ^ Anderson, J.; Cowlishaw, G.; Rowcliffe, J. M. (2007). "Effects of forest fragmentation on the abundance of Colobus angolensis palliatus in Kenya's coastal forests". International Journal of Primatology. 28 (3): 637–655. doi:10.1007/s10764-007-9143-7. S2CID 207151776.
  7. ^ a b Philip Briggs; Janice Booth (2010-03-16). Rwanda. Bradt Travel Guides. ISBN 978-1-84162-306-1.