The Effect of Forest Fragment Characteristics on Abundance of Colobus vellerosus in the Forest-Savanna Transition Zone of Ghana

The development of effective conservation and management actions for populations of wild species generally requires monitoring programs that provide reliable estimates of population size over time. Primate researchers have to date given more attention to evaluating techniques for monitoring primates in natural habitats compared to populations that occur in villages or urban areas. We conducted censuses to estimate the abundance and density of two sacred, village-dwelling populations (Lagwa and Akpugoeze) of Sclater's monkey (Cercopithecus sclateri), a threatened species endemic to southeastern Nigeria, and compared these data to previous census results. We recorded population increases in both sites: a 66% increase over 4½ years in Lagwa (from 124 to 206 individuals) at an annual rate of 10.2%, and a 29% increase over 4 years in Akpugoeze (from 193 to 249 individuals) at an annual rate of 5.7%. Mean group size also increased in both sites. Density in Lagwa was 24.2 individuals/km(2) , and density in a core survey area of Akpugoeze was 36-38 individuals/km(2) . Our results may have been affected by monkey ranging and grouping patterns and improved detectability due to our revised census technique, which included secondary observers. With further work on methodology for censusing populations that occur in human-settled environments, techniques can be refined and customized to individual sites for more accurate estimates. Our investigation of Sclater's monkey in Lagwa and Akpugoeze, two sites critical for conservation of the species, indicated that both of these populations have increased, and neither faces immediate risk of extirpation. Such population growth, while encouraging, will likely exacerbate human-monkey conflict and thus should be understood in terms of potential socioeconomic impacts.

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sacred populations of Cercopithecus sclateri: Analysis of apparent population increases from census counts

Baker

Tanimola

Olubode

2013

“…Ursine colobus or white‐thighed black‐and‐white colobus ( C. vellerosus ) is one of two diurnal primate species that resides at BFMS (Saj, Teichroeb, & Sicotte, ). This is an arboreal, folivorous monkey (Saj & Sicotte , ) that lives in uni‐male or multi‐male multi‐female groups of 9–38 animals (Kankam & Sicotte, ; Wong & Sicotte, ). Dispersal is male‐biased in this species (Teichroeb, Wikberg, & Sicotte, ), although females do show facultative dispersal (Sicotte et al, ; Teichroeb et al, ; Teichroeb, Wikberg, & Sicotte, ; Wikberg, Sicotte, Campos, & Ting, ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Divergence in gut microbial communities mirrors a social group fission event in a black‐and‐white colobus monkey (Colobus vellerosus)

Goodfellow

Whitney

Christie

et al. 2019

Self Cite

Host behavior and social factors have increasingly been implicated in structuring the composition of gut microbial communities. In social animals, distinct microbial communities characterize different social groups across a variety of taxa, although little longitudinal research has been conducted that demonstrates how this divergence occurs. Our study addresses this question by characterizing the gut microbial composition of an African Old World monkey, the black-and-white colobus (Colobus vellerosus), before and after a social group fission event. Gut microbial taxonomic composition of these monkeys was profiled using the V-4 hypervariable region of the bacterial 16S ribosomal RNA gene, and pairwiserelatedness values were calculated for all individuals using 17 short tandem repeat loci and partial pedigree information. The two social groups in this study were found to harbor distinct microbial signatures after the fission event from which they emerged, while these communities were not divergent in the same individuals before this event. Three genera were found to differ in abundance between the two new social groups: Parabacteroides, Coprococcus, and Porphyromonadaceae.Additionally, although this fission happened partially along lines of relatedness, relatedness did not structure the differences that we found. Taken together, this study suggests that distinct gut microbial profiles can emerge in social groups in <1 year and recommends further work into more finely mapping the timescales, causes, and potentially adaptive effects of this recurring trend toward distinct group microbial signatures.

“…20 km from BFMS; Fargey, 1991]. The population of C. vellerosus at BFMS has been studied under the supervision of PS since the year 2000 and is currently estimated at 275 individuals in 19 groups [Kankam & Sicotte, 2013]. The population density in the core forest has increased during the last three decades [Kankam & Sicotte, 2013;Saj et al, 2005].…”

Section: Study Species and Populationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The population of C. vellerosus at BFMS has been studied under the supervision of PS since the year 2000 and is currently estimated at 275 individuals in 19 groups [Kankam & Sicotte, 2013]. The population density in the core forest has increased during the last three decades [Kankam & Sicotte, 2013;Saj et al, 2005]. BFMS is connected to several smaller fragments of forests by a narrow riparian forest; colobus are present in some of these fragments and groups or individuals travel between fragments [Kankam & Sicotte, 2013;Saj et al, 2005;.…”

Section: Study Species and Populationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The population density in the core forest has increased during the last three decades [Kankam & Sicotte, 2013;Saj et al, 2005]. BFMS is connected to several smaller fragments of forests by a narrow riparian forest; colobus are present in some of these fragments and groups or individuals travel between fragments [Kankam & Sicotte, 2013;Saj et al, 2005;. C. vellerosus females do not have external signs of ovulation and breed all year around.…”

Section: Study Species and Populationmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The influence of male takeovers on female dispersal inColobus vellerosus

Sicotte

Teichroeb

Vayro

et al. 2015

Self Cite

Male takeovers affect male tenure, female mate choice and ultimately, individual reproductive success in group-living primates. In social systems with female philopatry and high male reproductive skew, male takeovers largely determine female mate choice, whereas in species with female dispersal, females have the option of deserting a new male. We focused on a species with facultative female dispersal to investigate which factors promote female desertion of males after takeover, using 15 cases (12 for which we have complete data on the takeover process and the female dispersal outcome). These cases took place in nine groups of Colobus vellerosus between 2001 and 2013 at the Boabeng-Fiema Monkey Sanctuary, Ghana. Quick takeovers were usually achieved by single adult males and were never followed by female dispersal. Slow takeovers involved several males, and these takeovers were regularly accompanied by female emigration. Infant attacks and infanticide by males occurred during both kinds of takeovers, but females with dependent offspring never dispersed, regardless of whether their infant was attacked or killed by the new male(s). Subadult females, who were not constrained by the presence of infants, dispersed more often after slow takeovers than after quick takeovers. Whether female dispersal post-takeover is an expression of female mate choice, or occurs to avoid the social upheaval surrounding slow takeovers, remains to be investigated. Am. J. Primatol. 79:e22436, 2017. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.