Otherwise known as the Francois Leaf-monkey, the Francois Langur is born bright orange in colour which is believed to help with identification before its coat changes to black, with distinctive white cheek markings in maturity.
Francois Langurs are found in small populations in semi-tropical monsoon and moist tropical and sub-tropical rainforests in southern China, and north-eastern Vietnam.
In Vietnam, the major threat to this species is hunting, although some populations face pressures from mining and other resource extraction.
The isolation of populations due to habitat fragmentation taking place for agricultural development threatens the genetic viability of small populations.
In some areas of China, the threat of hunting is extremely severe, due to the illegal production of “black ape wine,” which is made specifically from this species; the animals are even imported illegally from Viet nam for this purpose.
In China, populations are threatened by habitat loss due to local cultivation and wood cutting for firewood.
Unmanaged fires that spread into limestone karst habitats also result in the loss of habitat.
@thresheg thanks Graham - I am pleased to have some photos of them - they are not always out and about and their exhibit is not photo easy - Igo to the zoo a lot and have only had 2 proper opportunities to get decent photos
