Cercopithecus erythrogaster, Gray, 1866

Russell A. Mittermeier, Anthony B. Rylands & Don E. Wilson, 2013, Cercopithecidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 3 Primates, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 550-755 : 688

72.

Red-bellied Monkey

Cercopithecus erythrogaster

French: Cercopitheque a ventre roux / German: Rotbauchmeerkatze / Spanish: Cercopiteco de vientre rojo

Other common names: \White-throated Monkey; Nigeria White-throated Monkey (pococki), Red-bellied Guenon (erythrogasten

Taxonomy. Cercopithecus erythrogaster Gray, 1866 ,

West Africa. Restricted by P. Grubb and colleagues in 1999 to Benin, Lama Forest.

C. erythrogasteris a member of the C. cephus superspecies group as defined by J. Kingdon in his 1997 Field Guide to African Mammals. It also includes C. cephus , C. petaurista , C. sclateri , C. erythrotis , and C. ascanius . C. P. Groves in his 2001 Primate Taxonomy had the same composition for his cephus species group. Two subspecies recognized.

Subspecies and Distribution.

C.e.erythrogasterGray,1866—SETogo(TogodoForest)andSBenin(LamaClassifiedForestandontheNigerianborder,NofPortoNovo).

C. e. pococki Grubb, Lernould & Oates, 1999 — SW & SC Nigeria.

Descriptive notes. Head-body 45-50 cm (males) and 40-45 cm (females), tail 65-70 cm (males) and 55-60 cm (females); weight 3-5—4-5 kg (males) and 2-4 kg (females). The Red-bellied Monkey is characterized by its prominent white throat—essentially a ruff of white hairs under lowerjaw that extends onto sides of neck. Another distinguishing feature is a black-edged diadem of gold-flecked black hairs on the front of the crown. The gold contrasts with solid black frontal and parietal bands. Cheeks have tufts of light yellow and black banded hairs with white whiskers. Nose patch may be white, black, or dark brown. Back and flanks are a dark agouti, red-brown color, and underside is gray or red. Arms are dark, almost black, and legs are a lighter gray. Tail has a pale, grayish-white ventral surface and a dark tip. Red-bellied Monkeys typically hold their tail in a vertical question-mark pose, with tip away from head and body. The “Red-bellied Guenon” (C. e. erythrogaster ) has a bright rusty-red chest and underside, except groin, underside of tail base, and inner sides of thighs, which are white. Its black fronto-parietal band reaches to just behind ears. The “Nigeria White-throated Monkey” (C. e. pococki) has a brownish-gray chest and belly, sometimes with a slight reddish tinge. Its black fronto-parietal band reaches right around behind the crown and mayjoin to complete the circle at the back.

Habitat. Lowland moist and semi-deciduous forest, including riverine gallery and swamp forest. Red-bellied Monkeys inhabit primary and secondary forest, although most of the forest in which they now live has been heavily modified by human activities.

Food and Feeding. Diet and feeding behavior of the Red-bellied Monkey are poorly known. Principal food items are thought to be fruits, and it also eats leaves and insects. In the Lama Forest, Benin, it favors ripe fruit, with immature fruit eaten in the dry season. It is also raids crops because of forced habitat restriction.

Breeding. There is no specific information available for this species.

Activity patterns. The Red-bellied Monkey prefers dense, tangled forest vegetation and spends much of its time in lower levels of the canopy and among growth in canopy gaps along rivers. Individuals are agile and use small to medium-sized supports to walk, run, and climb quadrupedally through the forest. This, coupled with their acute vision, makes them difficult to observe because they often detect people well before people are able to detect them.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. The Red-bellied Monkey lives in social groups, although there are no accurate data on group composition. Most groups probably have 10-20 individuals, although groups of up to 30 individuals have been observed. They are most likely to contain a single adult male, adult females, and young. Solitary adult males have also been observed. On census walks in Lama, Benin, groups averaged 9-6 individuals, butit is typical not to see all group members during surveys ofthis type. No published information on movements and home range is available.

Status and Conservation. CITES Appendix II. Classified as Vulnerable on The IUCN Red List, including the subspecies pococki, but the nominate subspecies erythrogaster is classified as Endangered. The Red-bellied Monkeyis listed as Class A in the African Convention on the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. Habitat loss and hunting have led to a population decline of 30% over the past 27 years (three generations). Their forests have been severely degraded and exploited by agricultural expansion and timber extraction. The Red-bellied Guenon has a scattered distribution, but it is relatively abundant in some areas such as Okomu National Park and in a number of forest reserves (e.g. Udo, Omo, Oluwa, and Ifon). The Red-bellied Guenon has a restricted range (less than 5000 km?) in a heavily populated area. This, coupled with intense hunting, is causing continuing population decline, and it is likely that the population of Red-bellied Guenons has declined by ¢.50% over the past 27 years. It persists in forests that are not suitable for cultivation because to seasonal flooding and occurs in some sacred tree groves (where hunting is taboo) and gallery forests. A protected central refuge of semi-deciduous forest in the Lama Forest of Benin (c.2000 ha) is home to the largest remaining population of the Red-bellied Guenon. Facing similar threats, the Nigeria White-throated Monkey is believed to have declined ¢.30-40% over the past 27 years. Its populations occur in the central part of Okomu Forest Reserve in Edo State (Okomu became a Wildlife Sanctuary in 1985 and a National Park in 1999) and Omo Forest Reserve in Ogun State, which includes a 460ha Biosphere Reserve (a larger wildlife conservation area is also planned for this locality). The Nigeria White-throated Monkey also occurs in the Niger Delta where, although the forest is degraded and not protected, hunting pressure is lower than in most other parts of southern Nigeria.

Bibliography. Goodwin (2007), Groves (2001), Grubb, Lernould & Oates (1999), Grubb, Oates et al. (2000), Mason (1940), Nobime & Sinsin (2003), Nobime et al. (2009), Oates (1982b, 1985, 1996a, 2011), Oates, Gippoliti & Bearder (2008b), Robinson (1994), Sinsin, Nobime et al. (2002).

Figures

69. Owl-faced Monkey (Cercopithecus hamlyni), 70. Lesula (Cercopithecus lomamiensis), 71. Spot-nosed Monkey (Cercopithecus petaurista), 72. Red-bellied Monkey (Cercopithecus erythrogaster), 73. Sclater’s Monkey (Cercopithecus sclateri), 74. Red-eared Monkey (Cercopithecus erythrotis), 75. Mustached Monkey (Cercopithecus cephus), 76. Red-tailed Monkey (Cercopithecus ascanius)

Subspecies and Distribution. C.e.erythrogasterGray,1866—SETogo(TogodoForest)andSBenin(LamaClassifiedForestandontheNigerianborder,NofPortoNovo). C. e. pococki Grubb, Lernould & Oates, 1999 — SW & SC Nigeria.