Ugandan Grey-cheeked Mangabey (Lophocebus ugandae) lives in tropical rainforest across Central Africa. It feeds on fruits and leaves. Its conservation status is Least Concern.
Fascinating facts about the Ugandan Grey-cheeked Mangabey
- Its entire range is confined to Uganda and the Minziro Forest Reserve just over the border in Tanzania, with no populations elsewhere. It is known from the forests on the north and north-western sides of Lake Victoria, including the Mabira, Bujuko and Bukasa forests as well as the vicinity of Sango Bay. The mangabey also occurs near Kibaale, east of the Albertine Rift Valley, and nowhere else in Africa.
- In 2007 Colin Groves promoted the Ugandan population to full species status, yet most authorities still treat it as a subspecies. On 16 February 2007 he raised the mangabeys present in Uganda to a separate species, L. ugandae, on phylogenetic grounds. However the IUCN continues to list the taxon as a subspecies of L. albigena, so the reclassification remains contested.
- Compared with its relatives, the Ugandan mangabey is markedly smaller, possessing a shorter skull and a reduced facial size. It is also less sexually dimorphic than other grey-cheeked mangabeys, meaning males and females look more alike. The subspecies has a smaller skull overall, which contributes to its overall reduced body size and distinguishes it from the other forms.
- Monkeys from eastern Uganda display a yellowish-brown coat, while those in the west wear a slightly darker grey-brown hue. Individuals from the east of Uganda have a yellowish-brown colour and those from the west are a slightly darker greyish-brown. The pale chocolate-brown mane and breast stand out against the body, a contrast that is stronger than in the related Johnston's mangabey.
- Living high in the canopy, it spends most of its day among the treetops, feeding on fruits such as false nutmeg, breadfruit, date palm, oil palm and the seeds of Erythrophleum species. The mangabey is an arboreal species that occupies the upper canopy of both primary and secondary forests.
Sources
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At a glance
RangeCentral Africa
HabitatTropical rainforest
DietFruits and leaves
About the Ugandan Grey-cheeked Mangabey
In the lush, vibrant canopies of Uganda's tropical forests, the grey-cheeked mangabey reigns as a master of agile locomotion, its slender limbs and prehensile tail weaving a mesmerizing dance through the leafy underworld. With eyes that shine like dark, polished onyx, this intelligent and social primate navigates its arboreal realm with effortless ease, its whooping calls echoing through the trees as it forages for fruit and leaves. As it moves, the mangabey's grey-cheeked visage seems to blend seamlessly into the dappled shadows, a testament to its remarkable adaptability in this rich, emerald world.
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