Odd Nosed Monkeys Recent Advances In The Study Of The Forgotten Colobines

This book provides multiple perspectives on odd-nosed monkeys, an ecologically diverse group. Major topics include: evolution, taxonomy, comparative morphology, molecular genetics, population biology, behavior, ecology and conservation.

The Natural History of the Doucs and Snub-nosed Monkeys provides a comprehensive introduction to the biology of some of the rarest and least-known nonhuman primates. Virtually unstudied and unknown until 20 years ago, the doucs and snub-nosed monkeys occupy some of the most remote habitats of eastern Asia and exhibit some of the most unusual adaptations of any nonhuman primates. The volume provides detailed information on these rare Asian primates that will be useful to practitioners of evolutionary biology, field and laboratory primatology, systematics, field ecology, and conservation biology. Contents:Introduction (N G Jablonski)Evolution and Systematics:The Evolution of the Doucs and Snub-nosed Monkeys and the Question of the Phyletic Unity of the Odd-nosed Colobines (N G Jablonski)Classification and Distribution of the Extant Subspecies of Golden Snub-nosed Monkey (Rhinopithecus roxellana) (Y-X Wang et al.)Mitochondrial Cytochrome b Gene Sequences of Langurs: Evolutionary Inference and Conservation Relevance (Y-P Zhang & O A Ryder)Anatomy:The Integument of the “Odd-nosed” Colobines (G Chaplin & N G Jablonski)Mandibular Morphology of the Doucs and Snub-nosed Monkeys in Relation to Diet (N G Jablonski et al.)The Morphology of the Gastrointestinal Tract of Pygathrix nemaeus (Linneaus, 1771) (J M Caton)Ecology and Behavior:Ecology and Behavior in Snub-nosed and Douc Langurs (R C Kirkpatrick)Natural History of Douc Langurs (L K Lippold)Preliminary Observations on the Ecology and Behavior of the Tonkin Snub-nosed Monkey (Rhinopithecus avunculus) in Northern Vietnam (R Boonratana & X C Le)Ecology and Behavior of the Guizhou Snub-nosed Langur (Rhinopithecus brelichi), with a Discussion of the Socioecology in the Genus (W V Bleisch & J-H Xie)Selected Nutrient Analysis of Plants in the Diet of the Guizhou Snub-nosed Monkey (Rhinopithecus brelkichi) (W V Bleisch et al.)Preliminary Survey of the Home Range and Ranging Behavior of Golden Monkeys (Rhinopithecus roxellana) in Shennongjia National Natural Reserve, Hubei, China (Y-J Su et al.)Preliminary Survey of the Social Organization of Rhinopithecus roxellana in Shennongjia National Natural Reserve, Hubei, China (R-M Ren et al.)Time Budgets of the Yunnan Snub-nosed Monkey (Rhinopithecus bieti) (Y-C Long et al.)Conservation:Primate Conservation in Vietnam (L K Lippold & V N Thanh)Conservation Status and Prospects of the Snub-nosed Langurs (Colobinae: Rhinopithecus) (R-M Ren et al.)Conservation of Tonkin Snub-nosed Monkey (Rhinopithecus avunculus) in Vietnam (R Boonratana & X C Le)Maintenance and Breeding of Yunnan Snub-nosed Monkeys (Rhinopithecus bieti) in Captivity (W-Z Ji et al.)Appendix: Toward a Gazetteer of the Snub-nosed and Douc Langurs (R C Kirkpatrick) Readership: Primatologists, anthropologists and biologists. keywords:Evolution;Primates;Paleontology;Conservation;East Asia;Southeast Asia;Mammals;Anatomy;Systematics;Taxonomy “… producing a nicely bound and printed book, with excellently reproduced illustrations, including colour photographs … the publishers' recommended price is more than fair.” International Zoo News “This book is an excellent addition to the conservation biology literature and will be a valuable reference for all university libraries … I highly recommend this book to all those who are concerned about the conservation and management of highly endangered Asian primates.” Journal of Mammalogy

Primates in Perspective is the first edited volume to offer a comprehensive overview of primatology since 1987. Forty-four original essays--by fifty-nine leading researchers in the field today-- provide wide-ranging and contemporary coverage of all of the major areas of primatology. Arranged in six sections, the text begins with an introduction to primatology and a review of the natural history of the major taxonomic groups within the order Primates. It goes on to cover methodologies and research design for both field and captive settings; primate reproduction; primate ecology and conservation and their roles in the daily lives of primates; and such aspects of social behavior and intelligence as communication, learning, and cognition. The volume ends with a concluding chapter by the editors that discusses the future of primatological research. Ideal for introductory primatology courses, Primates in Perspective can also be used in upper-division behavior and conservation courses. Additionally, it is an invaluable reference tool for primate researchers.

This conference represents the first time in my life when I felt it was a misfor tune, rather than a major cause of my happiness, that I do conservation work in New Guinea. Yes, it is true that New Guinea is a fascinating microcosm, it has fascinating birds and people, and it has large expanses of undisturbed rainforest. In the course of my work there, helping the Indonesian government and World Wildlife Fund set up a comprehensive national park system, I have been able to study animals in areas without any human population. But New Guinea has one serious drawback: it has no primates, except for humans. Thus, I come to this conference on primate conservation as an underprivileged and emotionally deprived observer, rather than as an involved participant. Nevertheless, it is easy for anyone to become interested in primate conserva tion. The public cares about primates. More specifically, to state things more realistically, many people care some of the time about some primates. Primates are rivaled only by birds, pandas, and the big cats in their public appeal. For some other groups of animals, the best we can say is that few people care about them, infrequently. For most groups of animals, no one cares about them, ever.

This will be the first time a volume will be compiled focusing on South American monkeys as models to address and test critical issues in the study of nonhuman primates. In addition, the volume will serve an important compliment to the book on Mesoamerican primates recently published in the series under the DIPR book series. The book will be of interest to a broad range of scientists in various disciplines, ranging from primatology, to animal behavior, animal ecology, conservation biology, veterinary science, animal husbandry, anthropology, and natural resource management. Moreover, although the volume will highlight South American primates, chapters will not simply review particular taxa or topics. Rather the focus of each chapter is to examine the nature and range of primate responses to changes in their ecological and social environments, and to use data on South American monkeys to address critical theoretical questions in the study of primate behavior, ecology, and conservation. Thus, we anticipate that the volume will be widely read by a broad range of students and researchers interested in prosimians, New World monkeys, Old World monkeys, apes, humans, as well as animal behavior and tropical biology.

Wild chimpanzees are only found in tropical Africa, where their populations have declined by more than 66% in the last 30 years. This Action Plan focuses on one of the four chimpanzee subspecies, the western chimpanzee, which is one of the two subspecies most threatened with extinction. This publication presents a plan for action that represents a consensus among all parties concerned with the conservation of chimpanzees.