The Frontiers of India's Biological Diversity

Borges, Renee M (2005) The Frontiers of India's Biological Diversity. In: Tropinet - Supplement to Biotropica, Vol 37, Iss 3, 16 (3).

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Abstract

India has a long and rich history of tropical science. But here, as elsewhere in the tropical world, there are surprises to be discovered. One thinks immediately of the description, in December 2004, of a new species of macaque from India - the Arunachal macaque Macaca munzala. I use the word description deliberately, because this species was long known to the local people, and the species name rightly reflects this knowledge. Mun zala means "deep-forest monkey" in the language of the Dirang Monpa people of Tawang and West Kameng Districts of Arunachal Pradesh, where this species lives. The new macaque was discovered by science during field trips to these areas by Indian scientists from the Nature Conservation Foundation in Mysore, the National Institute of Advanced Studies in Bangalore, the Wildlife Conservation Society in New York, and the International Snow Leopard Trust. In this habitat, the largely Buddhist local community abstains from killing wildlife for food or sport, although the monkey has been reportedly shot for crop raiding. This species, one of the world's highest-living primate species, lives at altitudes between 1,600 and 3,500m, and is thus a veritable yeti.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Publication:	Tropinet - Supplement to Biotropica, Vol 37, Iss 3
Publisher:	The Association for tropical biology and conservation
Additional Information:	Copyright for this article belongs to the association of tropical biology and conservation
Department/Centre:	Division of Biological Sciences > Centre for Ecological Sciences
Date Deposited:	13 Jan 2010 12:52
Last Modified:	27 Feb 2019 09:12
URI:	http://eprints.iisc.ac.in/id/eprint/24738

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