Roloway Monkey

Taxobox
name = Roloway MonkeyMSW3 Groves | pages=158]


status = CR
trend =
status_system = iucn3.1
status_ref = IUCN2007 | assessors = Butynski, T. "et al" | year = 2000 | id = 4232 | title = Cercopithecus diana "spp." roloway | downloaded = 2008-03-30]
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Mammalia
ordo = Primates
familia = Cercopithecidae
genus = "Cercopithecus"
species = "C. roloway"
binomial = "Cercopithecus roloway"
binomial_authority = (Schreber, 1774)
synonyms = "palatinus" (Wagner, 1855)The Roloway Monkey ("Cercopithecus roloway") is a species of Old World monkey found in a small area of eastern Côte d'Ivoire and the forests of Ghana, between the Sassandra and Pra Rivers.

The Roloway Monkey is similar to other species of guenons but is distinguished by its lengthy beard. The Roloway Monkey's coat and face are predominantly black, while the throat and the interior side of its arms are white, and its hips and back are orange. The body length varies between 40 and 55 centimetres and its weight is between 4 and 7 kilograms.

The species is arboreal, and forms social groups of 15 to 30 individuals. Its diet is composed of fruits, flowers, seeds and insects.

The Roloway Monkey is among the most threatened primates on the African continent. Exact figures for the species are not available, due to data deficiency. Recent surveys could not find evidence of it in Ghana's Bia National Park, where it was probably eliminated between mid 1970s and 1990. There are estimates are that there probably has been a population decline of at least 80% over the last three generations.

The Roloway Monkey was previously considered a subspecies of the Diana Monkey ("Cercopithecus diana").

References