Tufted Gray Langur

conservation

Conservation: CITES – Appendix I and U. S. ESA – Endangered as included in S. entellus; IUCN – Vulnerable as S. entellus thersites, Data Deficient as S. entellus priam.

Order Primates

activity

Activity patterns. The Tufted Gray Langur is diurnal and mainly terrestrial. Foraging activity peaks in early morning at 06: 00 - 09: 30 h and again before nightfall at 15: 30 - 18: 00 h. Intensive feeding takes up to c. 3 hours / day.

Cercopithecidae

biology_ecology

Habitat. Mostly in forested areas, occasionally in home gardens, at elevations of 180 — 1200 m. The “ Central Indian Gray Langur ” (S. p. anchises) is found in tropical dry deciduous forests, occupying the middle to upper canopy at elevations up to 800 m, as well as near human settlements and forest fringes. The Madras Gray Langur is found at elevations of 180 - 1200 m in highly degraded, non-contiguous tropical dry evergreen forest and scrub forest. The Sri Lankan Gray Langur, endemic to Sri Lanka, is found in dry, deciduous forests in lowlands, and it overlaps with the Purple-faced Langur (S. vetulus) in semi-evergreen forests. It does not occur in wetter evergreen forests and hill zones at elevations above 500 m in southern Sri Lanka, which is the exclusive domain of the Purple-faced Langur. It can also be found in urban outskirts and temples. The Sri Lankan Dry Zone has a marked dry season in June — October and annual rainfall is ¢. 1700 mm. Sri Lankan Gray Langurs inhabit alluvial and high stature forest (15 m high or more) and medium and low stature forest (5 - 15 m), low scrub, and slash-and-burn cultivation.

Cercopithecidae

biology_ecology

Movements, Home range and Social organization. There is no definitive information for the mainland populations of Tufted Gray Langurs. The Sri Lankan Gray Langur lives in unimale — multifemale and multimale-multifemale groups of 20 - 60 individuals, with 3 - 6 adult males. They live in home ranges of 30 - 130 ha that overlap extensively. Core areas of exclusive use are 7 - 20 ha. Group sizes and home ranges tend to be larger in open habitats than in forests. At Yala National Park in south-eastern Sri Lanka, groups have 40 - 60 individuals, with 8 - 10 adult males. It would seem that even in these dry areas, Tufted Gray Langurs are not very dependent on free water. A group studied at Polonnurawa lived near a reservoir but rarely drank from it. Considered to be a spacing mechanism among groups, males give loud “ whooping calls ” in choruses in early to mid-morning (after sympatric Purple-faced Langurs, which generally call before sunrise). Sometimes Tufted Gray Langurs go to the tops of emergent tamarind trees (Tamanindus indica, Fabaceae) for these choruses. A distinctive feature of their social behavior is the “ display jump, ” performed at any time during the day, usually stimulat

Cercopithecidae