Neighbours of a golden langur habitat in western Assam’s Bongaigaon district have opposed a move by the State government to upgrade it to a wildlife sanctuary.

Kajoijana Bamuni Hill Wildlife Sanctuary

• The Assam Forest Department has issued a preliminary notification for converting the 19.85 sq. km. patch of forest into the Kajoijana Bamuni Hill Wildlife Sanctuary.
• It is one of the better-known homes of the golden langur (Trachypithecus geei) found only in Assam and Bhutan.

About Golden Langur

• Gee’s golden langur (Trachypithecus geei), also known as simply the golden langur, is an Old World monkey.
• It is found in a small region of Western Assam and in the neighboring foothills of the Black Mountains of Bhutan.
• Long considered sacred by many Himalayan people, the golden langur was first brought to the attention of the western world by the naturalist Edward Pritchard Gee in the 1950s.
• Adult males have a cream to golden coat with darker flanks while the females and juveniles are lighter.
• It has a black face and a long tail up to 50 cm in length.

Its habitat

• It lives in high trees and has a herbivorous diet of ripe and unripe fruits, mature and young leaves, seeds, buds and flowers.
• The average group size is eight individuals, with a ratio of several females to each adult male.
• It is one of the most endangered primate species of India and Bhutan.

Distribution

• Its habitat is bounded on the south by the Brahmaputra River, on the east by the Manas River, on the west by the Sankosh River, in Assam and on the north by the Black Mountains of Bhutan.

Conservation status

• IUCN Red List: Endangered
• CITES: Appendix I
• Wildlife Protection Act, 1972: Schedule I

Try this question from CSP 2014:

 

Q. Which one of the following groups of animals belongs to the category of endangered species?

 

(a) Great Indian Bustard, Musk Deer, Red Panda, Asiatic Wild Ass

(b) Kashmir Stag, Cheetah, Blue Bull, Great Indian Bustard

(c) Snow Leopard, Swamp Deer, Rhesus Monkey, Saras (Crane)

(d) Lion Tailed Macaque, Blue Bull, Hanuman Langur, Cheetah

 

Post your answers here.

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