Yet another sad news for environmentalists. Three-quarters of primate species are in decline and about 60% are now threatened with extinction, a groundbreaking study by a team of 31 primatologists has revealed.
From gorillas to gibbons, primates are in significantly worse shape now than in recent decades because of the devastation from agriculture, hunting and mining.
Gulf Times had mentioned in these columns last month about the threats being faced by the giraffe, the reindeer and the cheetah. Now it is the turn of most of the primates, going by the study published in Science Advances.
Anthony B Rylands, a senior research scientist at Conservation International and a co-author of the new study, told Carl Zimmer of The New York Times that there will be a number of extinctions within next 50 years if things go on the way they are. Since 2000, a total of 85 new primate species have been identified, bringing the total to 505.
Just last week, a team of researchers described a new species of gibbon in China. Dr Rylands says he knows of at least seven new primate species to be announced this year. Scientists are finding so many new primate species in part because the destruction of forests is making it easier to reach populations that were once remote.
Another reason for the burst of discovery is that scientists have started investigating the DNA of primates, finding that some populations had unique mutations, though they look very similar to our eyes. Every species of ape (including gorillas, chimpanzees, bonobos, orangutans and 19 species of gibbons) is threatened, while 87% of lemur species are. Other species that are critically endangered include the brown-headed spider monkey of Ecuador, the Niger Delta red colobus, and the crested macaque.
Dr Katherine C MacKinnon, an anthropologist at Saint Louis University and a co-author of the study, and her colleagues identified a number of human activities pushing primates to the edge, such as hunting. In West Africa and in some areas fringing the Amazon Rainforest, for example, there is a strong demand in local markets for primate meat.
Primates are also threatened by the wholesale destruction of forests to make way for agriculture. In the Amazon, the jungle is being converted to cattle ranches and soybean fields, while in Madagascar, rice paddies are taking the place of lemur forests. Madagascar was once home to giant lemurs that could weigh as much as 160kg. The fossil record shows that 17 lemur species became extinct after humans arrived there 2,000 years ago.
Some of the most endangered primate species are down to just a few dozen survivors. Their prospects are grim, because many of them live in parts of the world where human populations are projected to grow the fastest.
Research has shown that primates are extremely important to the ecosystems in which they live. As they feed on leaves and fruit, for example, they move pollen between trees. They pass seeds in their droppings, allowing plants to spread across a healthy range. Concrete steps need to be taken to help primates.
