Miopithecus ogouensis – Gabon talapoin
The Gabon talapoin (Miopithecus ogouensis) is a small species of monkey found not only in Gabon but in other African countries including Angola, Congo, Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea. Its range includes the Ogooue River, after which it was named but extends to other riparian habitats from the equatorial forest zone south of the Sanaga River in southern Cameroon to other tributaries of the Congo River including the Lefini and Almira Rivers .
Although the monkey is listed as being of least concern in the IUCN Red List of Endangered Species , it is suffering significant wide-ranging habitat decline. Nowak has found that Miopithecus ogouensis is increasingly using swamp forests as refuge habitats despite its ability to tolerate modification to its habitat and the fact that it thrives close to human settlements . It may be that mangrove and swamp forests prove uninhabitable to humans and Miopithecus ogouensis is less threatened in this habitat.
Because the species is small and vulnerable to predators, it relies on the dense riverine undergrowth and evergreen cover of lowland equatorial rainforests and riverine forest for protection against predators . Miopithecus ogouensis can swim and dive underwater if threatened and is never found more than 500 meters from a fresh watercourse .
. The diet of Miopithecus ogouensis is comprised mostly of fruits together with oil palm nuts and African ginger (Aframomum), and eats beetles, spiders and caterpillars on an opportunistic basis.
The monkey’s biggest threat is that of being hunted for food (bushmeat) by local villagers, but is drawn to human-established riverside gardens which grow pawpaw, bananas and maize. Although humans pose a threat to the monkey, it is not a major target for hunters and indeed human settlements may provide particular benefits to this species. Predators are deterred by human presence and land clearance and crop rotation provides secondary growth as habitat for the species . The species is regarded as common and often roosts at night in dense riverine vegetation with up to 120 animals of its own species . Population densities are estimated at between 40-90 animals per square kilometer.
Although not considered endangered, the species is listed in Appendix II of the CITES convention, which is a list of species which are not at present threatened with extinction, but may become so in the trade in the species in not strictly controlled . The IUCN does not consider that this species requires proactive conservation efforts due to its large population and the fact that its habitat occurs in areas which are already protected . It is also listed in the African Convention as Class B, under which the species is totally protected but may be captured, killed, hunted or collected with special permission from relevant authorities .
The dangers of the earlier-mentioned practice of hunting Miopithecus ogouensis for food, or keeping the species as pets, is the extreme risk to humans of contracting immunodeficiency viruses . In Cameroon and the Congo Basin, the hunting of bushmeat has long been undertaken as a source of human dietary protein and for income. Peeters et al. have confirmed the presence of Simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) in wild talapoin monkeys (Miopithecus ogouensis) and have established that a large proportion of wild primates carry the virus.
Bibliography
CITES. The CITES Apendices. 2016. <https://cites.org/eng/app/appendices.php>. This website is published by the Convention for the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. Established in 1975, the Convention is administered by the United Nations Environment Programme. The convention regulates the trade of wild animals and plants across international borders, in an effort to protect and conserve species. The site is a reliable source of information because it is underpinned by the United Nations.
National Council for Law Reporting. African Convention On The Conservation Of Nature And Natural Resources (1968). 2013. <http://kenyalaw.org/treaties/treaties/37/AFRICAN-CONVENTION-ON-THE-CONSERVATION-OF-NATURE-AND>. This website was the only reliable source of information about the African Convention. It is believe to be a quality source of information because it is the official publisher of the Laws of Kenya and is headed by the Kenyan Judiciary.
Nowak, Katarzyna. “Mangrove and Peat Swamp Forests: Refuge Habitats for Primates and Felids.” Folia Primatologica 83.3-6 (2013): 361-76. This article was published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal, and its author holds a Ph.D. from Cambridge University. She is also the author of many similar peer-reviewed articles on African Wildlife and is considered an expert in her field.
Oates, J.F. & Groves, C.P. “Miopithecus ogouensis.” 2008. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 200. 29 August 2016. The authors of this article were employed by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, a peak body in wildlife conservation. The information is considered reliable because it was reviewed by the members of the Primate Red List Authority of the IUCN.
Peeters, Martine et al. “Risk to Human Health from a Plethora of Simian Immunodeficiency Viruses in Primate Bushmeat.” Emerging Infectious Diseases (2002): 451–457. 30 Aug. 2016. The information contained in this article is considered reliable because its authors are either members of various international universities in Cameroon, Belgium and Alabama, U.S. or government organizations in France and Cameroon. The article has also been peer-reviewed.
