Golden-headed Leaf Monkey

Facts

IUCN CRITICALLY ENDANGERED (CR)

Facts about this animal

Golden-headed langurs reach a head-body length of 50-60 cm and a body-weight of 15-20 kg. The tail length ranges from 82-89 cm. Like other langur species, they have slim hands and feet and reduced thumbs, a sacculated stomach to assist in the breakdown of cellulose and large salivary glands to assist it in breaking down food. The fur colour ranges from bright golden to yellowish-white on the head, shoulders, and rump, the back is dark chocolate brown, almost black, and there is a grey band running from the thighs to the back, forming a V-shape above the tail root. The long hair of the back forms a shoulder cape. The fur colour of infants is a flamboyant orange.

Golden-headed langurs are social, diurnal and arboreal. An average social group comprises 4 to 5 animals. They live in forests around limestone formations, at an elevation from 70-100 meters, and regularly sleep in caves throughout the year. One langur group may have up to 12 different resting caves. The group spends only one or two nights in the same cave before moving on to other feeding and sleeping places.

The golden-headed langur gives birth to a single offspring. The breeding season of this species is probably in April.

The diet of the golden-headed langur mainly consists of leaves, but also includes fresh shoots, flowers, bark and some fruits that are not palatable to human beings. Most of the langur’s food has very high concentration of fibre and tannic acids, and it often contains substances that would be poisonous to other animals, including human beings.

Did you know?
that the only known locality where this langur occurs is the island of Cat Ba in northern Viet Nam? There is no evidence that the Cat Ba Langur ever inhabited the mainland.

Factsheet
Class	MAMMALIA
Order	PRIMATES
Suborder	SIMIAE
Family	CERCOPITHECIDAE
Name (Scientific)	Trachypithecus poliocephalus
Name (English)	Golden-headed Leaf Monkey
Name (French)	Semnopithèque de Cat Bà
Name (German)	Goldkopflangur
Name (Spanish)	Langur de Cabeza Dorada
CITES Status	Appendix II
CMS Status	Not listed

Photo Copyright by
Jörg Adler

Distribution

Distribution
Range	Viet Nam (Island of Cat Ba)
Habitat	Karst and forest on limestone
Wild population	T. p. poliocephalus: 64 individuals (2006); T. p. leucocephalus: 700-800 individuals (2003) (Red List IUCN 2011)
Zoo population	0 reported to ISIS

In the Zoo

How this animal should be transported

For air transport, Container Note 31 of the IATA Live Animals Regulations should be followed.

Find this animal on ZooLex

Photo Copyright by
Jörg Adler

Why do zoos keep this animal

Currently no golden-headed leaf-monkeys are kept outside VietNam, but a few zoos participate in an in situ conservation project.

How this animal should be kept

The golden-headed leaf-monkey is a social species and should be kept in groups. Outdoor enclosures for a group of five adults with their offspring should have a surface of no less than 100 m² and a height of 5 m, although legal requirements may be lower. In cold and temperate climates, an indoor eclosure is mandatory. For up to 5 animals it should have a minimum surface of 25 m² and a height of 3 m, although ideally it should be larger. The separation towards the visitor should be made of glass to prevent infections and feeding. A minimum temperature of 20°C should be maintained.

Both outdoor and indoor enclosures must be well structured, have ample climbing opportunities, and allow the animals to withdraw.

The diet must include a high percentage of foliage or branches in leaf. In addition vegetables with a high content of crude fiber, and small amounts of fruit and animal protein should be fed. Golden-headed leaf-monkey should be fed at least three times per day.