Hello! Fellow primates. We are the common Langurs. If you live in East side of India, you must probably know us, our species live in close neighbourhood to you and sometimes pass by through the roof tops. We play a vital role in India and Hindu community, here are some of the things you might not know about us.
- We are sacred in India. If you know about Hindu Mythology, Ramayana, you must know Lord Hanuman. It is said in Ramayana, Lord Hanuman got his face, hands, and legs burnt in the pursuit of meeting Goddess Sita. Since, our face, hands, and legs are black in color, we are called Hanuman Monkeys.
- We are quite an Intelligent species. We are capable of using tools like sticks and branches for various activities.
- We have a powerful grip on all our limbs including the tail and can jump from one tree to another quite easily.
- We sometimes are also tamed for roadside performances by humans and also for Hindu rituals.
- Do you know? We communicate with each other quite well vocally, we have more than 19 distinct types of calls.
- In the wild, we live in large groups and are very aggressive.
- We, like every other monkey, groom each other to maintain social bonds.
- Grooming includes activities like removing bugs and ticks from each other’s bodies, tending for any injuries, etc.
SOME QUICK FACTS ABOUT US
Our Scientific Name: Semnopithecus entellus.
Identification: Grey colored monkey with black colored face, hands and legs.
Our Habitat: Any kind of forest and near human settlements.
Our Range:
Our Food Habits: Omnivorous; feed on fruits, leaves, flowers, bark, gum, organic matter in the soil, and insects.
Our Breeding Period: July – October.
Number of offspring: 1
Our Gestation period: 200-212 days.
Sexual Maturity: Males: 5 years; Females: 2.5-3 years.
Our Lifespan: About 30 years in captivity, 18 years for males and 30 years for females in the wild.
IUCN red list status: Least Concern.
CITES: Appendix I
Indian Wildlife Protection Act: Schedule II
Scientific Classification:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Primates
Suborder: Haplorhini
Infraorder: Simiformes
Family: Cercopithecidae
Subfamily: Colobinae
Genus: Semnopithecus
Species: S. entellus
COMPLETE DETAILS FOR ANIMAL ENTHUSIASTS
We belong to the family of Old-world Monkeys and are also called Grey Langur or Sacred Langur or Indian Langur or Hanuman Langur.
Common Langurs are scientifically called as Semnopithecus entellus.
How We Look:
We are monkeys with a body length of 51cm-79cm and a tail length of 69cm-102cm. Our tails are considerably longer, even longer than the length of our bodies.
Males of our species are larger than females with an average weight of males being 18kg and the average weight of females being 11kg.
Our bodies have brownish-grey fur with reddish color fur on the back and white fur on the underparts.
Our face, ears, hands, and feet are black in color. The tail end is white in color. Males and females look alike, and the young ones of our species are pale but, look like adults.
We Are Found In:
We live mostly on the ground and sometimes on trees. Our adaptability helps us to live and survive in a wide variety of habitats. We can live in any kind of forest and also near human settlements.
Our range lies in the Indian Subcontinent. India, Nepal, Tibet, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.
What We Eat:
We are omnivorous monkeys but mostly have a herbivore diet. Our diet consists of fruits, leaves, flowers, bark, gum, organic matter in the soil, and insects.
Our Reproduction:
We are social animals and form male and female groups with 2-100 individuals. We are polygamous mammals (having multiple mates for a lifetime).
The male and female groups have hierarchy and the dominant position is determined in males through fighting and in females according to age. Breeding occurs when the male group invades the female group.
The breeding season is between July and October. The females give birth to one infant (rarely two) at a time and the gestation period is 200-212 days. The young infants are taken care of by the mother and other females in the group.
The infant becomes independent after 8-13 months old and if the infant is male, it leaves the females’ group after 12-13 months. Males reach sexual maturity at about 5 years and females reach sexual maturity at about 2.5-3 years.
In captivity, our lifespan is around 30 years. In the wild, males live up to 18 years and females live up to 30 years.
More About Us:
We walk on four limbs and due to our long limbs, we can jump from one tree to another easily. Our leaps can be 3.6m-4.7m at a time.
We are highly social animals and often groom each other to maintain social bonds.
Our fine vision and our quick climbing help us locate food and detect possible danger.
We have predators like Leopards, Dholes, Wolves, Jackals, and Tigers. We communicate vocally and through visual cues and have 19 different types of calls.
We are intelligent species and capable of tool use for various activities.
We are considered as Sacred animals in many parts of India and play an important role in Hindu religion’s myth and folklore.
Our Conservation:
We are abundantly available in our range and due to our adaptivity, we thrive. However, there are threats like deforestation and the destruction of our habitat.
We are listed as “Least Concern” in the red list of IUCN, listed in CITES Appendix I and also protected under schedule II of Indian Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.
