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Communication Dans Un Congrès Année : 2007

A new and comprehensive analysis of the taxonomy of East Africa's threatened mangabeys and its importance to conservation

C. L. Ehardt
  • Fonction : Auteur
T. M. Butynski
  • Fonction : Auteur
T. R. Disotell
  • Fonction : Auteur

Résumé

Africa’s mangabey taxa are among the most threatened and least resolved taxonomically. Within the Eastern Arc Mountains and Coastal Forests of Tanzania and Kenya Biodiversity Hotspot are three of these severely threatened mangabeys: Tana River mangabey, Sanje mangabey, and the recently discovered Highland mangabey. Recognizing that well-founded taxonomy is foundational to, and inseparable from, wellconceived and executed conservation actions, we present a comprehensive approach to resolving the debates focused upon the specific, and even generic, status of these endangered mangabeys. Field-collected fecal samples for all three taxa have been subjected to molecular analyses, recordings of loud-call vocalizations of each have been analyzed for sonographic distinctiveness, and additional morphometric data have been examined for cranial and dental variation. Results of the comprehensive comparative analyis of these multi-faceted data provide a significantly strengthened and validated taxonomic placement for these highly threatened mangabeys. This analysis addresses the perplexing taxonomic/phylogenetic questions surrounding mangabey phylogeny, but also has application to our conservation efforts within East Africa’s most important area for primate conservation. Taxa designated as species (1) dominate conservation assessments, (2) drive funding for long-term conservation, (3) influence establishment and management of protected habitat, and (4) support lobbying efforts for inclusion on lists that carry legal weight (e.g., Red List, CITES appendices). If taxonomies are unresolved, as is the case for all of the mangabeys, then each of the preceding become compromised. This elevates the results of comprehensive taxonomic analysis to indispensable, especially for primates as severely threatened as these mangabeys of East Africa. The fieldwork component of this research has been supported by the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund.
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Dates et versions

hal-01320830 , version 1 (24-05-2016)

Identifiants

  • HAL Id : hal-01320830 , version 1

Citer

C. L. Ehardt, T. M. Butynski, T. R. Disotell, Jean-Pierre Gautier, William Scott Mcgraws. A new and comprehensive analysis of the taxonomy of East Africa's threatened mangabeys and its importance to conservation. 76th Annual Meeting of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists, Mar 2007, Philadelphie, United States. pp.104-105. ⟨hal-01320830⟩
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