Why is nilgiri langur endangered

Besides this, they are also poached for their skins which are used as drum heads. Habitat destruction, primarily due developmental projects like dams and hydroelectric projects have led to decline in their population size. The population of Nilgiri langur is estimated to be between 5, and 15, individuals with less than 10, mature individuals.

The following actions are needed for the conservation of the Nilgiri langurs. Small town girl with big city dreams. Naturalist but believes that fairy tales do come true! You are commenting using your WordPress. You are commenting using your Google account. You are commenting using your Twitter account. You are commenting using your Facebook account.

Notify me of new comments via email. Notify me of new posts via email. Skip to content. Unlike Common langurs the Nilgiri langurs are shy, retiring and occupy a dense forest habitat. Nilgiri langur is a threatened species because of declining trend in their population size. Those species which are likely to move into the endangered category in mid-term future if the causal factors continue to operate are known as vulnerable. However, the species which are facing threat of extinction in near future are known as endangered.

Distribution Range: Nilgiri langur is endemic to the southern portions of the Western Ghats, a mountain range in South of India. Physical Characteristics: Nilgiri langur is a Colobine monkey.

Nilgiri langurs have glossy black fur on their body and golden brown fur on their head. They have dark faces and white side-burns. Females have a white patch on the inside of the thighs which is also present in young females.

Nilgiri langurs are sexually dimorphic with males slightly larger than females. The home range of Nilgiri Langurs is between two and six hectares, which varies according to how concentrated the sources of preferred food are and the density of langur troops in the area. They have been affected by habitat loss due to crop plantations, mining, dams, and human settlements but they are good dispersers and are able to colonise new areas, which makes them better adapted than primates like the lion-tailed macaques.

Science Log. National Studbook of Nilgiri Langur. News Blogs Newsletters. And thus it was that I suddenly spotted a black face staring back at me from a tree branch, just across the road.

Apart from the white ruff collaring its neck, the langur was entirely black. Its fur was thick, resembling that of the lion-tailed macaque, another highly endangered endemic of the Western Ghats, but the tail of the Nilgiri langur matched the tails of other members of the langur family. Thankfully — given that we had a picnic lunch in our open jeep — langurs do not use their tails or sharp minds to steal food from unsuspecting humans.

The Nilgiri langur sitting before me was too beautiful, too regal, to engage in such paltry behaviour. The fog continued to clear, and more Nilgiri langurs began to appear in the trees, leaping from branch to branch with careless abandon. They had more grace than even the most talented of trapeze artists. Pic by Priya Ranganathan And then another car pulled around the curve and slowed, seeing us scattered across the road with our binoculars and cameras. They looked up curiously, and one sighted a langur.

The boys and their father headed straight for the bushes below the tree where the langurs were perched. The watchful dominant langur gave a warning hoot and suddenly the trees were alive as all the langurs dove for the safely of the dense underbrush of the forest.

Langurs were everywhere, calling and leaping, and flashes of white stood out against their black silhouettes. At last they had all vanished, taking cover elsewhere, and we were left standing on the road amazed at our good fortune to have spotted this endemic species. Nilgiri langurs are found in evergreen forests of the Nilgiri Hills in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala, although the species is on a global decline. It is mostly folivorous, but also eats flowers, buds, stems, bark, leaves, insects and soil.

Groups usually consist of nine to 10 mature individuals.