White Colobus Monkey

This proved to be quite a discovery for me yesterday. I wandered off my regular path into a little alcove I’d never visited before. There were a few new specimens I’d failed to photograph before so I took my time getting a few shots for fear I might not stumble on their niche again. I do that sometimes.

This Colobus Monkey was in a really dark location so I couldn’t get my normal sharp focus. I liked the angle and expression so here it is. From a distance they resemble a skunk hanging out in a tree. They are black & white with huge, long white, bushy tails that are around 5 feet long.

Colobuses are herbivorous, eating leaves, fruit, flowers, and twigs. Their habitats include primary and secondary forests, riverine forests, and wooded grasslands; they are found more in higher-density logged forests than in other primary forests. Their ruminant-like digestive systems have enabled these leaf-eaters to occupy niches that are inaccessible to other primates.

Colobuses live in territorial groups of about 9 individuals, based upon a single male with a number of females and their offspring. Newborn colobuses are completely white. Cases of allomothering are documented, which means members of the troop other than the infant’s biological mother care for it.

Colobuses are important for seed dispersal through their sloppy eating habits, as well as through their digestive systems. They are prey for many forest predators, and are threatened by hunting for the bushmeat trade, logging, and habitat destruction.

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