The Kashmir gray langur (''Semnopithecus ajax'') is an

Old World monkey Old World monkey is the common English name for a family of primates known taxonomically as the Cercopithecidae (). Twenty-four genera and 138 species are recognized, making it the largest primate family. Old World monkey genera include baboons ...

, one of the

langur The Colobinae or leaf-eating monkeys are a subfamily of the Old World monkey family that includes 61 species in 11 genera, including the black-and-white colobus, the large-nosed proboscis monkey, and the gray langurs. Some classifications sp ...

species. It is a

leaf-eating In zoology, a folivore is a herbivore that specializes in eating leaves. Mature leaves contain a high proportion of hard-to-digest cellulose, less energy than other types of foods, and often toxic compounds.Jones, S., Martin, R., & Pilbeam, D. (1 ...

monkey. It has been reported from Jammu and Kashmir and

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several peaks ...

in northwestern

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

but evidence indicates it only occurs in the Chamba Valley in Himachal Pradesh. Because of its restricted range, fragmented population and threats from human agriculture and development activities it is listed as

Endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and in ...

in the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...

. In Pakistan it occurs in Machiara National Park. It was formerly considered a subspecies of '' Semnopithecus entellus'' and is one of several ''

Semnopithecus Gray langurs, also called Hanuman langurs and Hanuman monkeys, are Old World monkeys native to the Indian subcontinent constituting the genus ''Semnopithecus''. Traditionally only one species ''Semnopithecus entellus'' was recognized, but since a ...

'' species named after characters from ''

The Iliad The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the '' Ody ...

'', along with '' Semnopithecus hector'' and '' Semnopithecus priam''.

Ecology and behaviour

It is

arboreal Arboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some animals may scale trees only occasionally, but others are exclusively arboreal. The habitats pose nu ...

and diurnal, and lives in

temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout ...

and alpine

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

s at elevations between . The

birth Birth is the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring, also referred to in technical contexts as parturition. In mammals, the process is initiated by hormones which cause the muscular walls of the uterus to contract, expelling the f ...

ing season for the Kashmir gray langur runs from January through June, although almost half of all infants are born in March. The infants are weaned at a higher age than most

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

colobine The Colobinae or leaf-eating monkeys are a subfamily of the Old World monkey family that includes 61 species in 11 genera, including the black-and-white colobus, the large-nosed proboscis monkey, and the gray langurs. Some classifications split ...

s. While most Asian colobines wean their young within the first year, Kashmir gray langurs wean their young on average at 25 months. This is apparently due to nutritional constraints, since monkeys in poorer sites wean their young at an older age. The interbirth interval for females is about 2.4 years. Alloparental care occurs in Kashmir's gray langur for up to 5 months. Males are usually protective of infants, but infanticide occasionally occurs. Although most Asian colobine groups comprise only a single adult male and multiple females, multimale groups are known to occur within ''Semnopithecus'' species. With Kashmir's Gray Langur, multimale groups may include as many as five adult males. Females initiate copulation by soliciting a male, but not all solicitations result in copulation.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q385525 Kashmir gray langur Fauna of the Himalayas Fauna of Jammu and Kashmir Himachal Pradesh Mammals of India Mammals of Pakistan Endangered fauna of Asia Kashmir gray langur Taxa named by R. I. Pocock