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Sorry and Science

>> Monday, December 8, 2008


Sorry about the delay between posts. I am actually trying to line up some special things for the new year for us here at Potspoon! Productions locally. Without further ado, however, more science food for thought...


In association with my previous posts about gorillas, I have more primate news. Normally I use my own photos or photos licensed under creative commons, but this photo was so amazing I had to break my rules for a sec. It is from the BBC News article that this post is about.

The Tonkin snub-nosed monkey is a critically endangered animal thought to have had fewer than 250 individuals in the wild. Most of these were located in northeastern Vietnam. Scientists just discovered a group of about 20 in northwestern Vietnam. While the numbers aren't fantastic, this means that there are more than anticipated and with proper control, we can save this species.

More Info

Scientific Name: Rhinopithecus avunculus

  • There is not too much information on these stunning creatures. They have only wieghed four of them with the females around 8 kg (18 lbs) and the one male around 15 kg (32 lbs) so they are not very big.
  • Their diet is primarily (as recorded so far) leaves, especially from bamboo, and fruit. They are found in very small groups in northern Vietnamese lowlands.
  • They group like most primates having one male to many females. Other males form "bachelor" groups. It is unknown if the females are unrelated as in the gorillas or if there is kinship like chimpanzees.
  • They have lost more than 70% of their habitat since 1986.
Biologists from Fauna and Flora International are the ones that found this new group. Loss of habitat and use in medicines (really?!) are what have lead to this primate's decline.

That is it for now... Happy Monday!




8 comments:

Q December 8, 2008 at 9:44 AM  

Happy Monday to you too!
Always nice to know another species can be saved if humankind pays attention.
It is a hot tea day for me...I have a wee cold.
Thank you for posting about these darlings.
I shall do a bit of research.
Sherry

Marimoy December 8, 2008 at 11:20 AM  

@ Sherry... enjoy your tea! I hope you feel better!

Cheryl December 8, 2008 at 2:45 PM  

Beautiful creature.....so pleased that they have found another group...there is much hope for them.....

Marimoy December 8, 2008 at 3:35 PM  

@ Cheryl... when I say this photo, I was stunned. They are breathtaking. Maybe it's just me, but I keep looking at the picture and it really just makes me so happy that we can (hopefully) save them.

sealaura December 8, 2008 at 4:18 PM  

wow 2 posts in one day. Great info here. I love the primate stuff and bees are cool too. I hope you survive your finals, I am getting ready for mine this week.
Happy Monday!

Matthew Karsten December 8, 2008 at 4:32 PM  

A very photogenic monkey! :)

Marimoy December 8, 2008 at 10:01 PM  

@ sealaura... well, I wads trying to make up for my laziness. Have fun with finals!

Marimoy December 8, 2008 at 10:01 PM  

@ StylusFunk.... He definitely has the whole "glamazon" thing down, huh?

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