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LAO LANGUR

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LAO NEWT

LAO NEWT

As its name suggests, the Lao langur is found only in a small part of central Laos, in Bolikhamxay and Khammouane provinces – specifically, in Nam Kading National Protected Area, Nam Sanam Provincial Protected Area and Phou Hin Poun National Protected Area. Lao langurs are closely associated with the limestone karst forests in these protected areas, although they can also be found in non-limestone rock outcroppings on steep hill slopes where they take refuge from hunting.

The most significant threat to this species presently is hunting for meat and folk medicine, although it is also threatened by habitat loss since the forests that connect the karst formations are being logged for timber and converted into agricultural land. The ease of access to the border with Viet Nam exacerbates the hunting threat, since the bones of these primates are used in traditional medicine in Viet Nam. Young langurs are also captured alive, often after the mothers are killed, for captivity and “pet” trade. Several animals have been found in private tourism facilities and have been rescued from illegal trade in Laos over the years. In 2019, two Lao langurs were confiscated1 at the Bangladesh-India border, suggesting international trafficking of this species for pet trade, probably through land transport crossing the borders of Thailand, Myanmar and Bangladesh on their way to India.

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https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/lion-cub-possibly-african-3-primates-rescued-in-city/articleshow/69615821.cms https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/lion-cub-possibly-african-3-primates-rescued-in-city/articleshow/69615821.cms https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/lion-cub-possibly-african-3-primates-rescued-in-city/articleshow/69615821.cms https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/lion-cub-possibly-african-3-primates-rescued-in-city/articleshow/69615821.cms https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/lion-cub-possibly-african-3-primates-rescued-in-city/articleshow/69615821.cms https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T22044A17959133.en

Although a 2020 update of the IUCN Red List uplisted this species from Vulnerable to Endangered, this listing was based on a five-year-old assessment using field data more than ten years old. As such, the current conservation status of the Lao langur may be even more dire.

Coudrat, C.N.Z., Nadler, T., Phiaphalath, P. and Duckworth, J.W. 2020. Trachypithecus laotum. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020: e.T22044A17959133.

Accessed 8 May 2023.

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