Scientists discover ‘remarkable’ new species of monkey with orange lips and frog-like roar

A “remarkable” African monkey with a distinct orange patch around its mouth and a deep, throaty roar, found in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), is actually a new species – and may already be endangered.

The new species, Colobus congoensis, or Likweli, was discovered in Lomami National Park in Congo and is closely related to its “sister” species, the black colobus. Until now, the monkey was a familiar sight to local communities, but scientists had never officially described it.

Now in a new paper published Wednesday in PLOS Oneresearchers confirmed through genetic analyzes that C. congoensis is a new species. This is only the fifth new African monkey species identified over the past 75 years.

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C. congoensis is small – adults typically weigh around 15 pounds (seven kilograms) – and is recognizable by a “striking orange cream patch” around its mouth and a thatch of fine white hairs on its buttocks, the study authors write. To the untrained ear, its cry sounds a bit like that of a frog or a pig snorting.

This discovery lasted almost two decades. The hunt began in 2008, when a research team exploring the forest took the first known photo of the monkey.

Something was “strange” about his face, says Junior Amboko, co-author of a new study and a Ph.D. student in the Department of Biological Sciences at Florida Atlantic University.

But the photo was blurry, and at the time scientists couldn’t be sure it was a new species.

Later, other photos showed that the monkey did not have a thumb, revealing another clue to the identity of the primate: the absence of this finger is characteristic of the primate. Colobus monkeys. “But we didn’t know if it was a [new] species or subspecies,” explains Amboko.

In 2020, Amboko and his colleagues launched the Likweli Project, a research effort aimed at classifying the mysterious ape. They collected more photos, documented its calls and analyzed samples of dead monkeys confiscated during illegal hunting activities in the park.

It was genetic analysis of tissue samples that finally confirmed that it was a new species. “We were shocked by the genetic data because it gave us a signal of deep divergence,” says Kate Detwiler, lead author of the new study and associate professor of biological sciences at Florida Atlantic University. Amboko suggested the name Colobus congoensis recognize the rich biodiversity of the DRC.

C. congoensis is already threatened, in part due to hunting and human population growth. In the new paper, the researchers propose that it be listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which follows animal species at riskas being endangered.

“Protection of the Lomami National Park, within which most of the C. congoensis range and the commitment of local communities not to hunt the species are the most important actions needed to ensure the conservation of the species. C. congoensis,», Write the authors in the study.