Indochinese Black Langur
Encyclopedia
The Indochinese black langur (Trachypithecus ebenus) is a poorly known lutung
native to Laos
and adjacent Vietnam
. It was originally described as a subspecies
of T. auratus, but was later found to be a member of the T. francoisi group, with some maintaining it as a subspecies of that species. In 2001, it was recommended treating it as a separate species.
Except for its almost entirely black pelage, it resembles the other members of the T. francoisi group. Uniquely in this group, it and the related T. hatinhensis appear to be parapatric, T. ebenus showing what appears to be signs of intergradation
with T. hatinhensis are known, and genetically the two barely are separable. This has led to suggestions that it may be a black morph of that taxon
, which in turn possibly should be considered a subspecies of T. laotum. It was formerly considered data deficient
by IUCN, but they now include it in the endangered
T. hatinhensis.
Lutung
The lutungs are a group of Old World monkeys and make up the entirety of the genus Trachypithecus. Their range is split into two parts; one part is much of southeast Asia , the other part is extreme southern India and Sri Lanka. The greater part of India has lutungs...
native to Laos
Laos
Laos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
and adjacent Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
. It was originally described as a subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
of T. auratus, but was later found to be a member of the T. francoisi group, with some maintaining it as a subspecies of that species. In 2001, it was recommended treating it as a separate species.
Except for its almost entirely black pelage, it resembles the other members of the T. francoisi group. Uniquely in this group, it and the related T. hatinhensis appear to be parapatric, T. ebenus showing what appears to be signs of intergradation
Intergradation
In zoology, intergradation is the way in which two distinct subspecies are connected via areas where populations are found that have the characteristics of both...
with T. hatinhensis are known, and genetically the two barely are separable. This has led to suggestions that it may be a black morph of that taxon
Taxon
|thumb|270px|[[African elephants]] form a widely-accepted taxon, the [[genus]] LoxodontaA taxon is a group of organisms, which a taxonomist adjudges to be a unit. Usually a taxon is given a name and a rank, although neither is a requirement...
, which in turn possibly should be considered a subspecies of T. laotum. It was formerly considered data deficient
Data Deficient
Data Deficient is a category applied by the IUCN, other agencies, and individuals to a species when the available information is not sufficient for a proper assessment of conservation status to be made...
by IUCN, but they now include it in the endangered
Endangered species
An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...
T. hatinhensis.