Western black-and-white colobus
The king colobus (Colobus polykomos ), also known as the western black-and-white colobus, is a species of Old World monkey, found in lowland and mountain rainforests in a region stretching from Senegal, through Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia to the Ivory Coast. One of five members of the genus Colobus, the black-and-white colobuses, the king colobus is the westernmost species of the group on the continent of Africa. It eats mainly leaves, but also fruits and flowers. Though it is arboreal, it eats primarily on the ground. It lives in small groups consisting of 3 to 4 females and 1 to 3 males, plus their young. These groups maintain distance from one another through territorial calling.
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DiurnalDiurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
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HerbivoreA herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically adapted to eating plant material, for example, foliage, for the main component of its die...
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FolivoreIn zoology, a folivore is a herbivore that specializes in eating leaves. Mature leaves contain a high proportion of hard-to-digest cellulose, less ...
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ArborealArboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some anima...
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AltricialAltricial animals are those species whose newly hatched or born young are relatively immobile. They lack hair or down, are not able to obtain food ...
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ZoochoryZoochory animals are those that can disperse plant seeds in several ways. Seeds can be transported on the outside of vertebrate animals (mostly mam...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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TerritorialA territory is a sociographical area that which an animal consistently defends against the conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against anima...
Among animals, viviparity is the development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. The term 'viviparity' and its adjective form 'viviparous'...
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PolygynyPolygyny is a mating system in which one male lives and mates with multiple females but each female only mates with a single male.
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PolygynandryPolygynandry is a mating system in which both males and females have multiple mating partners during a breeding season.
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Dominance hierarchyA dominance hierarchy (formerly and colloquially called a pecking order) is a type of social hierarchy that arises when members of animal social gr...
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Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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starts withThe King colobus is a native African primate. This species is otherwise called the 'western black-and-white colobus' due to the black overall coloration of its body, contrasting with white colored chest and whiskers. This Old World monkey exhibits a prominent skull and a small rounded projection instead of the thumb. The King colobus displays oval eye-sockets and narrow superciliary ridges. The extensile nasal skin of this animal can extend to its mouth. This primate has complex sacculated stomach, but lacks pouches on its cheeks.
Endemic to Western Africa, these animals are found from Gambia to Côte d'Ivoire. Preferred habitat of King colobuses is lowland and mountain rainforest.
As diurnal animals, King colobuses are active during the day and sleep by night. These primates display highly social behavior, forming small groups of 1 - 3 mature males and 3 - 4 mature females. Males of this species live in dominance hierarchy system and don't tend to socialize. Females, on the other hand, live in very close bonds with each other and practice mutual grooming. Occasionally, various groups of the King colobuses come into conflicts, during which males exhibit some aggressive behavior such as territorial calling, thus displaying their strength and social status. Although males, usually give out these calls to ward off other groups or other males of their group, they may also use this form of communication as alarm calls, warning group members of potential threats.
The King colobuses are herbivores (folivores), their diet generally consists of soft, young leaves, growing on treetops. During certain seasons, the King colobuses also feed upon fruits and flowers.
The King colobuses exhibit both polygynous (one male mates with multiple females) and polygyandrous (individuals of both sexes have multiple mates) reproductive systems. While some populations may breed throughout the year, others have a well-defined mating system, giving birth during the dry season, between December and May. Gestation period lasts for 175 days, after which females give birth to a single infant, usually once every 2 years. The mother is very protective to her baby, suckling, protecting and grooming the young. She will also carry the newborn baby, which cannot walk independently. The age of reproductive maturity is 2 years old.
One of the major threats to the population of this highly endangered species is destruction of its natural habitat for private farming, commercial agriculture as well as selective logging. Additionally, the King colobuses attract hunters for their meat and coat.
The King colobuse used to be widespread, but no estimate of population size is available for this primate. Currently, this species is classified as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List.
Due to feeding upon leaves, fruits and seeds, King colobuses are likely to act as seed dispersers of the plants they consume. Then, these animals are an important prey species for local predators.
Social animals are those animals that interact highly with other animals, usually of their own species (conspecifics), to the point of having a rec...