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Nicobar Long-tailed Macaque

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Mammals

           iNicobar Long-tailed Macaque

                             Conservation status

   Near Threatened (NT)
            Scientific classification

   Kingdom:    Animalia
   Phylum:     Chordata
   Class:      Mammalia
   Order:      Primates
   Family:     Cercopithecidae
   Genus:      Macaca
   Species:    M. fascicularis
   Subspecies: M. f. umbrosa

                               Trinomial name

   Macaca fascicularis umbrosa
   Miller, 1902

   The Nicobar Long-tailed Macaque (Macaca fascicularis umbrosa, popularly
   known as the Nicobar Monkey) is a subspecies of the Crab-eating Macaque
   (M. fascicularis), endemic to the Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal.
   This primate is found on three of the Nicobar Islands — Great Nicobar,
   Little Nicobar and Katchal Island, in biome regions consisting of
   Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests.

Habitat

   Their preferred habitat includes mangroves, other coastal forests and
   riverine environments, however they are also found in inland forests at
   altitudes of up to 600 m above mean sea level The highest point in the
   Nicobars, Mount Thullier on Great Nicobar, is some 642 m high. In
   particular, areas of forest with trees of sp. Pandanus are favoured.
   Bands of these macaques living in coastal zones tend towards a more
   terrestrial existence and spend less time living in the trees than do
   the more arboreal populations of the inland forest zones. Each band has
   a favoured territory, preferentially close to a water source, over
   which they roam; this territory measures some 1.25 km² on average.

Morphology

   Nicobar Long-tailed Macaques have brownish to grey fur, with lighter
   colouration on their undersides. Their faces are a pinkish-brown, with
   white colour spots on their eyelids. Infants are born with a dark natal
   coating, which lightens as they reach maturity, which occurs at about
   one year of age. The gestational period is five-and-a-half months.
   Adult males are roughly one-and-a-half times larger than the females,
   and can measure up to 64 cm (approx. 2 ft) in height, and weigh up to 8
   kg. The males also have larger canine teeth than the females. Their
   prehensile tails are longer than their head-to-rump height. Like other
   macaques they possess cheek pouches in which they can store food
   temporarily, and transport it away from the foraging site to be eaten
   in shelter and safety. In captivity they can have a lifespan of up to
   approximately thirty years, however in the wild this is much shorter.

Behaviour

   They are frugivores, with their principal diet consisting of fruits and
   nuts; however in common with other Crab-eating Macaques they turn to
   other sources of food when the preferred fruits are out of season;
   typically in the dry and early rainy tropical seasons. This alternate
   diet includes young leaves, insects, flowers, seeds, and bark; they are
   also known to eat small crabs, frogs and other creatures taken from the
   shorelines and mangroves when foraging in these environments. Macaque
   populations which live in areas close to human settlements and farms
   frequently raid the croplands for food, and have even entered dwellings
   in search of sustenance if not actively discouraged by human presence.

   Like all primates, they are social animals, and spend a good deal of
   time interacting and grooming together. They typically forage for food
   in the morning, resting in groups during the midday hours and then a
   subsequent period of foraging in the early evening before returning to
   designated roosting trees to sleep for the night.

   These animals move quadrupedally on the ground as well as in the
   canopy, and they are capable of leaping distances of up to 5 m from
   tree to tree. They are also proficient swimmers.

Distribution

   The Nicobar Islands, three of which – Great Nicobar, Little Nicobar,
   and Katchal Island– provide the natural habitat for these macaques
   Enlarge
   The Nicobar Islands, three of which – Great Nicobar, Little Nicobar,
   and Katchal Island– provide the natural habitat for these macaques

   A 2003 study identified some 788 groups of this subspecies in the wild
   across the three islands, in group sizes averaging 36 individuals,
   although groups of up to 56 were recorded. The groups are comprised of
   multiple adult males and females, together with their immature
   offspring. Adult females in a group outnumbered the adult males by a
   general ratio of 4:1, with the ratio of immature young macaques to
   adult females being near-equal, indicative of a healthy population
   replenishment.

   Apart from these populations in the wild, only a single group (as of
   2002) of some 17 individuals is held in an Indian zoo for captivity
   breeding and research purposes.

   Populations of this subspecies are particularly noted in the Great
   Nicobar Biosphere Reserve, and its two consituent National parks of
   India, Campbell Bay National Park and Galathea National Park. Although
   these regions are protected areas, and the animal is classified as a
   Schedule I animal under India's 1972 Wildlife (Protection) Act, the
   increasing encroachment of settlements and farmlands in adjoining areas
   of the southeastern part of the island has led to some problems with
   the local inhabitants. Bands of Nicobar Long-tailed Macaques have been
   reported as damaging the settlers' crops, and a few macaques have been
   illegally killed. In particular, they are sometimes hunted or trapped
   to protect coconut plantations.

   Crab-eating Macaques on Great Nicobar have long been hunted for
   subsistence by the indigenous Shompen peoples of Great Nicobar,
   although they do not form a substantial part of their diet.

   As with other primates whose habitats overlap with or are encroached
   upon by human settlement activities, there is some risk of zoonotic
   disease transference to individuals who come into close contact with
   them. One 1984 study has identified their susceptibility to malarial
   parasites.

Conservation status

   Their conservation status as documented by the IUCN Red List is listed
   as Near Threatened, having been amended in 2004 from the taxon's
   previous status as Data Deficient following some more extensive
   studies. This reflects the likely increase in disturbances to their
   habitat caused by human activities, in particular on the island of
   Katchal. The Wildlife Institute of India however registered their
   status in 2002 as Critically Endangered, reflecting also their concerns
   that conservation efforts with regards to a defined captive breeding
   programme were deficient.
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