Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- PART I Introduction
- PART II Forest flora of eastern Africa
- PART III Forest fauna of eastern Africa
- 6 Biogeography of East African montane forest millipedes
- 7 The Linyphiid spider fauna (Araneae: Linyphiidae) of mountain forests in the Eastern Arc mountains
- 8 The montane butterflies of the eastern Afrotropics
- 9 Herpetofauna of the eastern African forests
- 10 The zoogeography of the montane forest avifauna of eastern Tanzania
- 11 Mammals in the forests of eastern Africa
- 12 Ecology of the Zanzibar red colobus monkey, Colobus badius kirkii (Gray, 1968), in comparison with other red colobines
- 13 The socioecology of interspecific associations among the monkeys of the Mwanihana rain forest, Tanzania: a biogeographic perspective
- PART IV Conservation
- Index
12 - Ecology of the Zanzibar red colobus monkey, Colobus badius kirkii (Gray, 1968), in comparison with other red colobines
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 November 2011
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- PART I Introduction
- PART II Forest flora of eastern Africa
- PART III Forest fauna of eastern Africa
- 6 Biogeography of East African montane forest millipedes
- 7 The Linyphiid spider fauna (Araneae: Linyphiidae) of mountain forests in the Eastern Arc mountains
- 8 The montane butterflies of the eastern Afrotropics
- 9 Herpetofauna of the eastern African forests
- 10 The zoogeography of the montane forest avifauna of eastern Tanzania
- 11 Mammals in the forests of eastern Africa
- 12 Ecology of the Zanzibar red colobus monkey, Colobus badius kirkii (Gray, 1968), in comparison with other red colobines
- 13 The socioecology of interspecific associations among the monkeys of the Mwanihana rain forest, Tanzania: a biogeographic perspective
- PART IV Conservation
- Index
Summary
Introduction
Colobus monkeys belong to the family Cercopithecidae, subfamily Colobinae. The actual classification of red colobus at specific and subspecific level is equivocal (Verheyen, 1962; Dandelot, 1968; Rahm, 1970; Kingdon, 1971; Struhsaker, 1975). For instance, the Zanzibar red colobus is considered a distinct species by Verheyen (1962) and Dandelot (1968), while others classify it at subspecific level (Rahm, 1970; Kingdon, 1971; Struhsaker, 1975). This problem arises as a result of the allopatric distribution and high affinities of the red colobus. The classification adopted in this chapter follows that of Rahm (1970), Struhsaker (1975, 1980), Kingdon (1971, 1981) and Rodgers (1981), in which all the 14 red colobus types are maintained as subspecies of Colobus badius Kerr.
The 14 subspecies of red colobus occur in a patch-like allopatric distribution across tropical Africa from Senegal to Zanzibar (Rahm, 1970; Kingdon, 1971; Struhsaker, 1975). Most populations are primarily adapted to mature low and medium altitude rain, riverine and groundwater forests (Struhsaker, 1975; Rodgers, 1981). However, some, such as Colobus badius temminckii (Kuhl), also occur in savanna woodland (Struhsaker, 1975; Starin, 1981). The Zanzibar red colobus are also found in mangrove forest, thickets of secondary growth and sometimes in cultivated areas: habitats that are also reported for the Gambia colobus C. b. temminckii (Starin, 1981).
Five allopatric subspecies of red colobus occur in East Africa. Three of these are found in eastern African forests (Figure 12.1).
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- Biogeography and Ecology of the Rain Forests of Eastern Africa , pp. 243 - 266Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 1993
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