Foa's red colobus (''Piliocolobus foai'') or the Central African red colobus, is a species of

red colobus Red colobuses are Old World monkeys of the genus ''Piliocolobus''. It was formerly considered a subgenus within the genus '' Procolobus'', which is now restricted to the olive colobus. They are closely related to the black-and-white colobus monke ...

monkey found in the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

Taxonomy

Several other species of red colobus were formerly considered subspecies of ''Piliocolobus foai'' by at least some authors but have since been elevated to full species. These include: * Lang's red colobus (''P. langi'') * Ulindi River red colobus (''P. lulindicus'') *

Oustalet's red colobus Oustalet's red colobus (''Piliocolobus oustaleti'') is a species of red colobus monkey. It lives in various types of forest in southern South Sudan, southern Central African Republic, northern Democratic Republic of the Congo and northeastern Re ...

(''P. oustaleti'') *

Lomami red colobus The Lomami red colobus (''Piliocolobus parmentieri'') is a type of red colobus monkey from central Africa. Historically it had been treated as a subspecies of the Central African red colobus, (''P. foai'') but more recent taxonomies generally tr ...

(''P. parmentieri'') * Tana River red colobus (''P. rufomitratus'') *

Semliki red colobus The Semliki red colobus (''Piliocolobus semlikiensis'') is a type of red colobus monkey from central Africa. Historically it has been treated as a subspecies of the Central African red colobus (''P. foai'') but more recent taxonomies generally t ...

(''P. semlikiensis'') *

Ugandan red colobus The Ugandan red colobus (''Piliocolobus tephrosceles'') or ashy red colobus is an endangered species of red colobus monkey, recognised as a distinct species since 2001. There is disagreement however over taxonomy with many considering the Uganda ...

(''P. tephrosceles'') It was previously thought that Foa's red colobus was made of two formerly separate species, one originally from highlands and the other originally from lowlands, which interbred into a single species. The highland species has since been split into ''P. foai

sensu stricto ''Sensu'' is a Latin word meaning "in the sense of". It is used in a number of fields including biology, geology, linguistics, semiotics, and law. Commonly it refers to how strictly or loosely an expression is used in describing any particular co ...

'', while the lowland species has been split into '' P. lulindicus''.

Distribution

Foa's red colobus is known only from two widely separated regions in the

Itombwe Mountains The Itombwe Mountains (or Itombwe Massif, Plateau) are a range of mountains in the South Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). They run along the west shore of the northern part of Lake Tanganyika. They contain a vast area o ...

of the

. It likely once had a larger range throughout the

Albertine Rift The Albertine Rift is the western branch of the East African Rift, covering parts of Uganda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania. It extends from the northern end of Lake Albert to the southern end of Lake Tan ...

in the past, but past

deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. The most concentrated d ...

in the area is thought to have led to a major range contraction.

Description

Foa's red colobus has long red and black fur on its back and head, with light underparts. Males have a body length excluding tail of between with a tail that is between long. Males typically weigh between and females typically weigh between . It has smaller teeth than most other red colobus species.

Behavior

Foa's red colobus is arboreal and diurnal. It has a varied diet which includes leaves, buds, fruit and flowers. It is frequently hunted for

bushmeat Bushmeat is meat from wildlife species that are hunted for human consumption, most often referring to the meat of game in Africa. Bushmeat represents a primary source of animal protein and a cash-earning commodity for inhabitants of humid tropi ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q189980 Foa's red colobus Mammals of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Endemic fauna of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Foa's red colobus Taxa named by Eugène de Pousargues