Red-Shanked Douc Monkey:
Customs officials at the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) arrested a passenger who was smuggling two red-shanked douc monkeys.
- It is an Old World monkey which is considered as a “Queen of primates”.
- They occur in subtropical and tropical broadleaf evergreen or semi-deciduous forests and to a lesser extent in secondary evergreen and mixed bamboo forests.
- Red-shanked doucs are found in Southeast Asia mainly in Vietnam, Southern Laos and Cambodia.
- Red-Shanked Douc Monkey is referred to as “the costumed ape,” the red-shanked douc langur is among the most colorful of primates.
- These are arboreal, herbivores and diurnal monkeys that eat and sleep in the trees of the forest.
- They communicate with each other using various facial expressions.
- Conservation Status: IUCN: Critically Endangered
- Hunting is the main threat – for subsistence use and traditional medicine – they are also hunted for the international pet trade.
