Ashy Red Colobus (Piliocolobus tephrosceles) lives in tropical rainforest across Sub-Saharan Africa. It feeds on leaves and fruits. Its conservation status is Endangered.
Fascinating facts about the Ashy Red Colobus
- Male Ugandan red colobus monkeys tip the scales at about 10.5 kg (23 lb) while females stay near 7 kg (15 lb), a size gap that makes males dominate. Their thumbs are so reduced they are almost absent, a trait that likely eases swinging through the canopy. This extreme dimorphism shows how body size and hand structure together shape the species' arboreal lifestyle and social hierarchy.
- The Ugandan red colobus occupies a narrow 1,000 km (620 mi) strip of East Africa, but its members live in just five isolated forest pockets. The biggest stronghold sits in Uganda's Kibale National Park, harboring roughly 17,000 individuals, the only population thought to be viable long-term.
- In Kibale's Ngogo sector, chimpanzees single out the Ugandan red colobus, killing up to 12 % of the local population each year. While chimpanzees rarely hunt other primates, they launch intense hunting bouts, prompting colobus troops to huddle and males to confront the attackers. This predator pressure is a major driver of the species' endangered status.
- The 1,443-kilometer East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) threatens to slice through the Kibale/Bukoora River Crossing, a zone where the ashy red colobus (Piliocolobus tephrosceles) lives. Habitat fragmentation from the pipeline could isolate already split forest patches, worsening the species' already precarious connectivity.
- A leaf-eater through and through, the Ugandan red colobus builds its diet almost entirely from foliage. Though it will nibble bark, seeds or fruit on occasion, it shows a clear preference for tender young leaves or the petioles of older leaves.
Sources
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At a glance
RangeSub-Saharan Africa
HabitatTropical rainforest
DietLeaves and fruits
About the Ashy Red Colobus
In the lush canopies of Tanzania's forests, the Ashy Red Colobus monkey weaves a delicate dance, its agile form gliding effortlessly through the tangled branches as it forages for leaves and fruits. With a coat of ash-grey and reddish-brown hues, this enchanting creature blends seamlessly into its surroundings, only to reveal its striking presence through a sudden flash of movement or a melodic call that echoes through the trees. As one of the most endangered primates in Africa, the Ashy Red Colobus's very existence is a poignant reminder of the fragile balance between life and extinction in these precious ecosystems.
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