DOUC LANGURS

RED-SHANKED DOUC

BLACK-SHANKED DOUC

Douc

There are three species of douc langurs endemic to the Annamites of Viet Nam, Laos and Cambodia, and all are assessed in the IUCN Red List as Critically Endangered. They can be distinguished by the unique colour of their lower legs, or shanks. Historically douc langurs lived in large social groups of up to 50 individuals. However, the effects of hunting may have caused many groups to become smaller. Populations of all douc langur species have declined by 50-80% in the last 30 years, and it is believed there are only a few hundred to a few thousand of each species left in the wild. Illegal hunting and trade is widespread and is happening at an alarming rate, despite the protection afforded under various national laws. For instance, an analysis of 10 years of wildlife crime incidents in Viet Nam found that 684 douc langurs were seized in 80 cases – 560 black-shanked douc langurs, 69 grey-shanked douc langurs and 50 red-shanked douc langurs. Habitat loss is another major threat, including deforestation for coffee, rubber, cashew, other crops and tree plantations, mining, and hydropower dams. Road infrastructure development has resulted in increased access to remote forests for poachers.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/357698759_The_illegal_trade_of_the_douc_langurs_Pygathrix_sp_in_Vietnam_-_January_2010_to_December_2020 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/357698759_The_illegal_trade_of_the_douc_langurs_Pygathrix_sp_in_Vietnam_-_January_2010_to_December_2020 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/357698759_The_illegal_trade_of_the_douc_langurs_Pygathrix_sp_in_Vietnam_-_January_2010_to_December_2020 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/357698759_The_illegal_trade_of_the_douc_langurs_Pygathrix_sp_in_Vietnam_-_January_2010_to_December_2020 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/357698759_The_illegal_trade_of_the_douc_langurs_Pygathrix_sp_in_Vietnam_-_January_2010_to_December_2020 https://www.researchgate.net/publication/357698759_The_illegal_trade_of_the_douc_langurs_Pygathrix_sp_in_Vietnam_-_January_2010_to_December_2020

The red-shanked douc is thought to have declined by more than 80% in the last four decades, largely due to hunting driven by the wildlife trade, and partly because of habitat loss. The largest remaining population is in Laos, particularly in the Nakai Nam Theun and Hin Nam No national parks, likely to represent the most extensive contiguous habitat for this species. In Viet Nam, the population has declined dramatically, with many areas where doucs were recorded in the 1990s now devoid of them. The largest population remains in Phong Nha Ke Bang National

Park, where the species is naturally protected by the difficult terrain of the limestone karst forests. Doucs are trapped alive for sale as “pets” and hunted heavily for their meat and to sell as purported “medicine”. They are highly priced in Viet Nam for their supposed medicinal properties. This demand for use in traditional medicine and associated illegal trade has devastated the populations in both Laos and Viet Nam.

The black-shanked douc is found only in the Annamites of northern Cambodia and southern Viet Nam. The black-shanked douc population is thought to have declined by more than 80% over the last two decades, due in part to hunting for traditional medicine and local meat consumption. The largest known population exists in Keo Seima Wildlife Sanctuary in Mondulkiri province, Cambodia, where the estimated population in 2020 was approximately 25,000 individuals. In the adjacent Srepok and Phnom Prich wildlife sanctuaries, the total estimated population in 2022 was approximately 6,500 individuals, together making this the second largest population of this species.1 https://wwfasia.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/vietnamese_j_primatol_vol_3_3_2021___7_7mb_1.pdf https://wwfasia.awsassets.panda.org/downloads/vietnamese_j_primatol_vol_3_3_2021___7_7mb_1.pdf https://www.conservationlaos.com/wonders-of-the-annamites/ https://www.conservationlaos.com/wonders-of-the-annamites/ https://www.conservationlaos.com/wonders-of-the-annamites/ https://www.conservationlaos.com/wonders-of-the-annamites/ https://www.conservationlaos.com/wonders-of-the-annamites/ https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T39826A17941247.en. Accessed 8 May 2023. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-1.RLTS.T39828A196138291.en. Accessed 8 May 2023. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T39827A17941672.en. Accessed 8 May 2023.

The grey-shanked douc is found only in the Annamites of Viet Nam, although its range may extend to north-eastern Cambodia. Currently, its population in Viet Nam’s Central Highlands is fragmented, and it is likely that only 1,000 to 2,000 individuals are left in the wild. In 2016, a Fauna and Flora International (FFI) led team of experts discovered about 500 grey-shanked douc langurs in Kon Tum province, one of the largest populations of this primate. FFI is now supporting the establishment of a nature reserve in Kon Plong in the eastern Annamite mountains to ensure the long-term survival of this population.

Grey-shanked doucs are classified as Critically Endangered. The Central Highlands is losing almost 10,000 hectares of forest annually due to logging, agriculture, hydropower development and road construction, and grey-shanked doucs are hunted for meat and to make the traditional monkey balm.

"Doucs initially sparked my interest in Southeast Asian biodiversity conservation when I was a student and inspired me to pursue conservation work in Laos,” said Camille N.Z. Coudrat, founder and director of Association Anoulak, an NGO focused on conserving the Annamite mountains' biodiversity in Laos.

Association Anoulak has produced a children’s book, Wonders of the Annamites: Life in the mountains of Laos and Vietnam, written and illustrated by Eric Losh.

Coudrat, C.N.Z., Quyet, L.K., Duc, H., Phiaphalath, P., Rawson, B.M., Nadler, T., Ulibarri, L. and Duckworth, J.W. 2020. Pygathrix nemaeus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020: e.T39826A17941247.

Duc, H., Quyet, L.K., Rawson, B.M., O'Brien, J. and Covert, H. 2021. Pygathrix nigripes (amended version of 2020 assessment). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021: e.T39828A196138291.

Long, H.T., Duc, H., Quyet, L.K., Rawson, B.M., Nadler, T. and Covert, H. 2020. Pygathrix cinerea. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020: e.T39827A17941672.

“Doucs hold a special place in my heart as the most beautiful primates in the world. Their captivating appearance, limited research done on them, and their high extinction risk make them truly unique. A world without these primates would be incomplete."