Kashmir Gray Langur
Encyclopedia
The Kashmir gray langur (Semnopithecus ajax) is an Old World monkey
, one of the species of langurs. This, like other gray langur
s, is a leaf-eating monkey. It is found in India
west into Pakistani Kashmir
and Nepal
. It was formerly considered a subspecies of Semnopithecus entellus and is one of several Semnopithecus species named after characters from The Iliad, along with Semnopithecus hector and Semnopithecus priam.
The Kashmir gray langur is considered to be endangered
. This is due to its restricted range, fragmented population, and threats from human agriculture and development activities. It is arboreal and diurnal, and lives in several types of forest
s at altitudes between 2200 and 4000 meters.
The birth
ing season for the Kashmir gray langur runs from January through June, although almost half of all infants are born in March. The infants are weaned at a higher age than most Asia
n colobines. While most Asian colobines wean their young within the first year, Kashmir gray langurs wean their young on average at 25 months. This is apparently due to nutritional constraints, since monkeys in poorer sites wean their young at an older age. The interbirth interval for females is about 2.4 years.
Alloparental care occurs in Kashmir's gray langur for up to 5 months. Males are usually protective of infants, but infanticide
occasionally occurs.
Although most Asian colobine groups contain only a single adult male and multiple females, multimale groups are known to occur within Semnopithecus species. With Kashmir's Gray Langur, multimale groups may include as many as five adult males. Females initiate copulation by soliciting a male, but not all solicitations result in copulation.
Old World monkey
The Old World monkeys or Cercopithecidae are a group of primates, falling in the superfamily Cercopithecoidea in the clade Catarrhini. The Old World monkeys are native to Africa and Asia today, inhabiting a range of environments from tropical rain forest to savanna, shrubland and mountainous...
, one of the species of langurs. This, like other gray langur
Gray langur
Gray langurs or Hanuman langurs, the most widespread langurs of South Asia, are a group of Old World monkeys constituting the entirety of the genus Semnopithecus. All taxa have traditionally been placed in the single species Semnopithecus entellus...
s, is a leaf-eating monkey. It is found in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
west into Pakistani Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
and Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
. It was formerly considered a subspecies of Semnopithecus entellus and is one of several Semnopithecus species named after characters from The Iliad, along with Semnopithecus hector and Semnopithecus priam.
The Kashmir gray langur is considered to be 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...
. This is due to its restricted range, fragmented population, and threats from human agriculture and development activities. It is arboreal and diurnal, and lives in several types of forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
s at altitudes between 2200 and 4000 meters.
The birth
Birth
Birth is the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring. The offspring is brought forth from the mother. The time of human birth is defined as the time at which the fetus comes out of the mother's womb into the world...
ing season for the Kashmir gray langur runs from January through June, although almost half of all infants are born in March. The infants are weaned at a higher age than most Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
n colobines. While most Asian colobines wean their young within the first year, Kashmir gray langurs wean their young on average at 25 months. This is apparently due to nutritional constraints, since monkeys in poorer sites wean their young at an older age. The interbirth interval for females is about 2.4 years.
Alloparental care occurs in Kashmir's gray langur for up to 5 months. Males are usually protective of infants, but infanticide
Infanticide (zoology)
In animals, infanticide involves the killing of young offspring by a mature animal of its own species, and is studied in zoology, specifically in the field of ethology. Ovicide is the analogous destruction of eggs. Although human infanticide has been widely studied, the practice has been observed...
occasionally occurs.
Although most Asian colobine groups contain only a single adult male and multiple females, multimale groups are known to occur within Semnopithecus species. With Kashmir's Gray Langur, multimale groups may include as many as five adult males. Females initiate copulation by soliciting a male, but not all solicitations result in copulation.