White-throated Guenon

White-throated Guenon (Cercopithecus erythrogaster), also known as Red-bellied Monkey and Red-bellied Guenon, are diurnal primates that live on trees of rainforests or tropical areas of Nigeria and Benin.

The White-throated Guenon is usually a frugivore but insects, leaves and crops are also in its diet. It usually lives in small groups of four to five individual monkeys however, there have been groups of 30 discovered, and in cases, some males wander alone. It is arboreal, living in moist tropical forest and the wettest parts of dry tropical forest, however it can also be found in secondary bush and old farmland.

The male weighs from 3.5–4.5kg and the female weighs 2–4kg. The female gives birth to one offspring, which is a factor of decreasing population.

White-throated Guenons were once considered extinct due to constant hunting for their unique red belly and white front legs. Yet, a small group was found near the Niger River in 1988.

White-throated Guenons are still considered endangared species near extinction due to their decreasing population. Today, their territory is protected and regarded as a holy land, where hunting and logging is restricted. It is one of the species that live in the Guinean Forests of West Africa Biodiversity Hotspot.

There are two subspecies of White-throated Guenon:

• Cercopithecus erythrogaster erythrogaster
• Cercopithecus erythrogaster pococki

References

• Animal Info 2004
• St. Thomas High School Student Project 2000