The monkey, "Mrs. Waldron's Red Colobus," had not been seen since 1978, and in 2000 researchers declared it appeared to be extinct. Last week, Scott McGraw, an anthropologist at Ohio State University who was part of the team that declared the ape extinct, announced that he had found evidence that the species still exists.
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It is possible that a transparent species, which according to information is extinct from the world, still jumps between the branches of the trees in Africa. The monkey, "Mrs. Waldron's Red Colobus," had not been seen since 1978, and in 2000 researchers declared it appeared to be extinct. However, on Wednesday last week, he announced Scott McGraw, an anthropologist at Ohio State University who was a member of the team that declared the ape extinct, said he found evidence that the species still exists.
Two years ago, McGraw got his hands on the skin of a monkey that was hunted in the Ivory Coast. He said the skin bore the markings of Mrs. Waldron's red colobus. He had black hairs on his back, typical of this species, and reddish fur on his forehead and thighs. The skin was stained with blood that had dried not long before. In addition, McGraw recently received a photograph from a colleague in Africa, showing a dead red colobus. McGraw said he was convinced the photo was real.
Mrs. Waldron's red colobus - one of 18 species of red colobus - grows to a height of about a meter and its head is relatively small for its body. It eats fruits, seeds and leaves and makes a loud screeching noise. According to information, the species is named after the spouse of the scientist who discovered it.
According to McGraw, Mrs. Waldron's colobus fell victim to farmers, who cut down much of its natural forest habitat, and to hunters who ate or sold its meat. McGraw has made several trips to Ivory Coast and plans to return to the country for combat training next summer. He had heard that hunters and other local residents had seen the red colobus, but he had yet to see it. "It was spotted in the far southeast corner of the Ivory Coast," McGraw said. "It's right in the center of the species' historical range. All the hunters you spoke to say that the forests are full of them."
John Oates, an anthropologist at Hunter College in New York who was also a member of the team that declared the species appeared to be extinct, said McGraw's findings did not surprise him. "We haven't ruled out the possibility that some monkeys still live somewhere," said Oates, "but no one has been able to see such a monkey jumping between the trees."
The researchers' 2000 work suggested that Mrs. Waldron's red colobus was the first primate species to go extinct in 200 years, and warned that other ape species could soon become extinct unless controls on deforestation and hunting are introduced. According to McGraw, Ivory Coast prohibits monkey hunting, but the ban is not strictly enforced.
For the first time in 100 years, a species of great ape has been declared extinct
Red colobus monkeys of Miss Wardron's kind have not been found in 20 years of careful searching; For the first time in 300 years, a species of primate became extinct
12/9/2000
In October '99 it was reported in the journal "Conservation Biology" that the monkey of the species "Miss Waldron's red colobus" was extinct. This is the first time in several hundred years that a member of the primate group, to which humans also belong, has been removed from the world.
The authors of the article, five researchers led by John Oates, an anthropologist at Hunter College in Manhattan, warned that if protective measures are not taken
donkeys, the disappearance of the red colobus will be only the beginning of a wave of extinction
of primates and other animals in West Africa. Deforestation, as a result
From tree division and road construction, reduced the living space of the wild animals
to islands cut off from each other. The animals are captured in small areas and shot in a manner
Systematized by hunters.
Dr. Ross McPhee, expert on extinction of animal species and curator of mammals
At the American Science Museum, he said that careful monitoring, which lasted for many years,
After the living areas and history of the monkeys allowed zoologists to show
A rare and important photo of the extinction track. "Extinction is usually
A process, not a one-time event," said McPhee, "most strains do not disappear
In a second."
The last scientific documentation of primate extinction was made in the early 18th century
So it was a primate Xenothrix McGregor in Jamaica. before him
Several types of giant lemurs became extinct in Madagascar in the 16th century. list
The endangered primates today include tamarins for teachers in Madagascar
In Brazil, langurs in Vietnam, orangutans in Sumatra, and gorillas
And several other types of monkeys.
According to Scott McGraw, an anthropologist at Ohio State University and one
According to the authors of the study, the last time the red colobus was seen was
In the 70s, a concentrated effort of seven years, in which they searched for him all over
The muddy rainforests and the places where the monkey used to stay, ended
Last month in the Ivory Coast in failure. McGraw offered rewards to hunters
that they could show him a red colobus: $100 if he could hear the
The voice of the monkey, or $200 if they show him, satellite photos
Forgotten paths in the rain forests were explored in search, but to no avail.
Many ecologists estimate that dozens of species of plants and animals are extinct
Every year as a result of the invasion of the forests by farmers, loggers and hunters
the tropics. But in most cases this does not receive much attention. according to
The scientists, what makes the extinction of the colobus noteworthy is
The fact that this is a prominent and large monkey, weighing about 9 kg, and also the fact
that he is a relative of his researchers, even if a distant relative.
"People aren't really worried about the disappearance of cockroaches or salamanders, though
When you lose a great primate, with whom we share a significant part of the code
Our genetics, the consequences of this extinction on humans are very great
More," said John Robinson, supermammal researcher and vice president of the association
for the conservation of wild animals, which helped several search expeditions for the monkey.
Peter Grubb, a zoo researcher, reiterated the opinion of the authors of the study
and an expert on mammals in Africa associated with the Science Museum in London, because with the help of
Better management of the reserves in Ghana and Ivory Coast was possible
who appears to save the monkey. Grubb thinks it's worth waiting a while before that
That the red colobus is finally eulogized, although according to him "it doesn't seem like there is."
There is a high chance that he survived."
(Originally published on 12.9)
Information from the agencies, 12/9/00
Scientists have declared a species of great ape from West Africa extinct. This is the first type of monkey to be declared extinct in the last hundred years. The news about the extinction of the species appears in the October issue of the monthly Conservation Biology. Anthropologists from the Society for the Conservation of Wild Life in New York were unable to find monkeys of the "Miss Woodron's red colobus" variety, during six years of searches in Ghana and the Ivory Coast, as part of a survey designed to check the condition of the monkeys in the region. The survey ended in 1999. The discovery of the monkeys' disappearance was no surprise to wildlife experts.
Their last confirmed sighting occurred more than 20 years ago in Ghana. This species was declared endangered in 1988. Scientists claim that the culprits for the disappearance of the monkey species are local hunters and loggers who destroy their natural habitat while trying to expand the areas available for agriculture in West Africa.
Miss Woodron's red kolobs were discovered in 1933. Apart from them, there are five other varieties of red kolobs in the world. They are considered a popular hunting target by the hunters who sell venison in the local markets, because of their high weight.
