Cyber Flashcards

10 OF THE MOST ENDANGERED PRIMATE SPECIES

#4

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Photo courtesy of © Nguyen Van Truong
what is thIS PRIMATE'S common name?
DELACOUR'S LANGUR
also called Delacour's lutung
What is the scientific name?
Trachypithecus delacouri
​WHAT KIND OF PRIMATE IS THIS?
MONKEY
Where do they live?
Delacour’s langurs are endemic to a small region of northern Vietnam just south of Hanoi. Their few remaining sub-populations mostly inhabit open subtropical rainforests. They spend most of their time on limestone rocks and in caves.
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Asia
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Where Delacour's langurs live (in red). Map: Chermundy & IUCN/Creative Commons
New world or old world?
OLD WORLD
fascinating facts
  • Delacour's langurs are one of few mammal species who are trogloxenes, that is, they live part-time in caves
  • They shelter in caves for protection at night, switching cave locations every few days
  • They emerge just before sunrise to forage, travel, and rest in groups on their rocky cliffs
  • Teetering on the bring of extinction, only 200-250 individuals remain
  • The Delacour's langur is one of the world's 25 most endangered primate species
What threatens their future?
According to the Vietnamese Journal of Primatology, of the 16 populations of Delacour’s langurs that existed in 2004, at least 6 had been eradicated by 2011. The majority of the remaining 10 populations only consist of one or two families, meaning that they are unlikely to survive in the long-term without intervention. Only the populations in Van Long Nature Reserve and possibly in Pu Luong Nature Reserve have enough monkeys to persist on their own. The langurs' greatest threat is hunting. Both local and Chinese poachers hunt these monkeys so that their bones and tissues may be used in traditional medicines. The Vietnamese government has done very little to enforce their laws to protect the species. Although hundreds of poachers are arrested each year, only 10% are prosecuted. Delacour's langurs are also threatened by habitat destruction.
​WHAT IS their CONSERVATION STATUS?
CRITICALLY ENDANGERED
What Does this Conservation Status mean?
Critically Endangered (CR) – Extremely high risk of extinction in the wild
Any species categorized as Critically Endangered, Endangered, or Vulnerable is considered by conservation scientists to be a threatened species
​HERE'S A SNAPSHOT AND THE SPECIES' PROFILE
Click or tap on the graphic to enlarge it
​LEARN MORE ABOUT Delacour's langurs
Go to the Delacour's Langur Primate Species Profiles page
are Delacour's langurs good pets?
NO
  1. Delacour's langurs are Critically Endangered wild animals. Their dietary and environmental needs cannot be adequately met or replicated in human living conditions. 
  2. To become pets, baby primates are stolen from their mothers. As a result, they do not develop normally emotionally.
  3. When taken from the wild, their mothers are killed to capture the baby.
  4. Primates are never domesticated. They always remain wild. 
  5. Caged primates are very unhappy and frustrated. They are likely to resist confinement. They are quick and cause damaging bites and scratches. Some die as a result of their captivity.
  6. Many locations have strict regulations that prohibit trading in or keeping primates and endangered species are pets.
  7. Delacour's langurs belong with other langurs in Vietnam. They and their habitats must be protected, not exploited.
#PrimatesAreNotPets
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​Common names are not officially defined. They are based on everyday conversational language and may differ by country, region, profession, community, or other factors. As a result, it is not unusual for a species to have multiple common names.

Scientific names, on the other hand, are standardized and constant. They are Latinized and rule-bound by a formal naming system called binominal nomenclature. Scientific names prevent misidentification. They typically only change if a species is officially redesignated.
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The biological order of Primates is divided into these classifications:​
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​​New World monkeys are native to Central and South America.

Old World monkeys are native to Africa and Asia.
Learn about the differences between New World monkeys and Old World monkeys
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  • ​Extinct (EX) – No known individuals remaining.
  • Extinct in the Wild (EW) – Known only to survive in captivity.
  • Critically Endangered (CR) – Extremely high risk of extinction in the wild.
  • Endangered (EN) – High risk of extinction in the wild.
  • Vulnerable (VU) – High risk of endangerment in the wild.
  • Near Threatened (NT) – Likely to become endangered in the near future.
  • Least Concern (LC) – Widespread and abundant.
  • Data Deficient (DD) – Not enough data to assess the species' risk of extinction.
  • Not Evaluated (NE) – Has not yet been evaluated.
Learn more about ​Conservation Statuses
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