Procolobus rufomitratus
| Tana River red colobus | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Primates |
| Family: | Cercopithecidae |
| Genus: | Procolobus |
| Subgenus: | Piliocolobus |
| Species: | P. rufomitratus |
| Binomial name | |
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Procolobus rufomitratus (Peters, 1879) |
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The Tana River red colobus (Procolobus rufomitratus), also called the eastern red colobus, is a highly endangered species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae. It is endemic to a narrow zone of gallery forest near the Tana River in southeastern Kenya.
As here defined, P. rufomitratus is a monotypic species restricted to Kenya, following Groves. As all red colobuses, it was formerly considered a subspecies of a widespread P. badius. Some recent authorities include P. tephrosceles, P. foai and P. tholloni as subspecies of P. rufomitratus instead of recognizing them as separate species.
The Tana River red colobus had been considered one of The World's 25 Most Endangered Primates. It was, together with the equally endangered Tana River mangabey, the main reason for the creation of the Tana River Primate Reserve in 1978, but human encroachment within this reserve continues. Recently, it has been suggested that 20,000 hectares of the Tana River Delta should be transformed into sugarcane plantations, but this has, temporarily at least, been stopped by the High Court of Kenya.Contra Groves, it was not recognized as a species separate from the Ugandan, Central African and Thollon's red colobus in the 2008 IUCN Red List. With these as subspecies, P. rufomitratus is considered to be of least concern in the 2008 IUCN Red List, while P. (r.) rufomitratus is considered endangered.
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