Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Feeding Ecology of the Omo River Guereza (Colobus guereza guereza) in Habitats with Varying Levels of Fragmentation and Disturbance in the Southern Ethiopian Highlands

  • Published:
International Journal of Primatology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Dietary responses to the habitat heterogeneity resulting from anthropogenic disturbance vary among primates. Some species alter their foraging strategy and continue to thrive in human-modified habitats while others are unable to modify their diets sufficiently to cope with such disturbance. Over a 12-mo period, we investigated the feeding ecology of the Omo River guereza (Colobus guereza guereza), a subspecies of black-and-white colobus monkeys endemic to Ethiopia, in a large continuous forest (Munessa: LC group), a smaller modified continuous forest (Wondo Genet: SC group), and a tiny forest fragment (Aregash: F group). We found that the forest fragment had higher tree stem densities but lower overall tree basal area than the continuous forests. In all three forests, guerezas were mostly folivorous (LC group: 83%; SC group: 65%; F group: 62%) and consumed young leaves in accordance with their availability. However, in addition to these broad dietary similarities, there were several differences between forests suggesting strategies guerezas may use to cope with habitat heterogeneity in southern Ethiopia. We found that guerezas in anthropogenically altered forests relied less on mature leaves and more on whole fruits (F group) or flowers (SC group) than guerezas in large continuous forest (LC group). Guerezas also devoted large percentages of their feeding time to exotic species in disturbed forests (SC group: 49.0%; F group: 20.6%) but not in the large continuous forest (LC group: 0.0%). Lastly, guerezas in disturbed forests had richer diets (F group, N = 37 species, SC group, N = 32) than those in the large continuous forest (LC group, N = 27). Thus, our study found that within the folivorous dietary strategy of guerezas, there is considerable dietary variability among even neighboring populations experiencing different degrees of habitat fragmentation and degradation. This dietary flexibility may explain the relatively high tolerance of guerezas to human disturbance across their geographic distribution.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Agostini, I., Holzmann, I., & Di Bitteti, M. S. (2010). Are howler monkey species ecologically equivalent? Trophic niche overlap in syntopic Alouatta guariba clamitans and Alouatta caraya. American Journal of Primatology, 72, 173–186.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Altmann, J. (1974). Observational study of behavior: Sampling methods. Behaviour, 49, 227–267.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Arroyo-Rodríguez, V., & Mandujano, S. (2006a). Forest fragmentation modifies habitat quality for Alouatta palliata. International Journal of Primatology, 27, 1079–1096.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arroyo-Rodríguez, V., & Mandujano, S. (2006b). The importance of tropical rain forest fragments to the conservation of plant species diversity in Los Tuxtlas, Mexico. Biodiversity and Conservation, 15, 4159–4179.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arroyo-Rodríguez, V., Mandujano, S., Benítez-Malvido, J., & Cuende-Fanton, C. (2007). The influence of large tree density on howler monkey (Alouatta palliata mexicana) presence in very small rain forest fragments. Biotropica, 39, 760–766.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Asensio, N., Cristobal-Azkarate, J., Dias, P. A. D., Vea, J. J., & Rodríguez-Luna, E. (2007). Foraging habits of Alouatta palliata mexicana in three forest fragments. Folia Primatologica, 78, 141–153.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Assefa, E., & Bork, H. R. (2014). Deforestation and forest management in southern Ethiopia: Investigations in the Chencha and Arbaminch areas. Environmental Management, 53, 284–299.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bergl, R. A., Bradley, B. J., Nsubuga, A., & Vigilant, L. (2008). Effects of habitat fragmentation, population size and demographic history on genetic diversity: The Cross River gorilla in a comparative context. American Journal of Primatology, 70, 848–859.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bicca-Marques, J. C. (2003). How do howler monkeys cope with habitat fragmentation? In L. K. Marsh (Ed.), Primates in fragments: Ecology and conservation (pp. 283–303). New York: Kluwer Academics/Plenum Publishers.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Bicca-Marques, J. C., & Calegaro-Marques, C. (1994). Exotic plant species can serve as staple food sources for wild howler populations. Folia Primatologica, 63, 209–211.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bocian, C. M. (1997). Niche separation of black-and-white colobus monkeys (Colobus angolensis and C. guereza) in the Ituri Forest. PhD thesis, City University of New York, New York.

  • Boyle, S. A., & Smith, A. T. (2010). Can landscape and species characteristics predict primate presence in forest fragments in the Brazilian Amazon? Biological Conservation, 143, 1134–1143.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chaffey, D. R. (1980). South-west Ethiopia forest inventory project: An inventory of forest at Munessa and Shashemene. Project Report 29. Ministry of Overseas Development, Land Resource Division, London.

  • Chapman, C. A., Chapman, L. J., & Gillespie, T. R. (2002). Scale issues in the study of primate foraging: Red colobus of Kibale National Park. American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 117, 349–363.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Chapman, C. A., Ghai, R., Jacob, A., Koojo, S. M., Reyna-Hurtado, R., et al (2013). Going, going, gone: A 15-year history of the decline of primates in forest fragments near Kibale National Park, Uganda. In L. K. Marsh & C. A. Chapman (Eds.), Primates in fragments: Complexity and resilience (pp. 89–100). Developments in Primatology: Progress and Prospects. New York: Springer Science+Business Media.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chapman, C. A., Naughton-Treves, L., Lawes, M. J., Wasserman, M. D., & Gillespie, T. R. (2007a). Population declines of Colobus in Western Uganda and conservation value of forest fragments. International Journal of Primatology, 28, 513–528.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chapman, C. A., Saj, T. L., & Snaith, T. V. (2007b). Temporal dynamics of nutrition, parasitism, and stress in colobus monkeys: Implications for population regulation and conservation. American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 134, 240–250.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Chaves, Ó. M., & Bicca-Marques, J. C. (2013). Dietary flexibility of the brown howler monkey throughout its geographic distribution. American Journal of Primatology, 75, 16–29.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Chaves, Ó. M., & Bicca-Marques, J. C. (2016). Feeding strategies of brown howler monkeys in response to variations in food availability. PLoS ONE, 11, e0145819.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Chaves, O. M., Stoner, K. E., & Arroyo-Rodríguez, V. (2012). Differences in diet between spider monkey groups living in forest fragments and continuous forest in Lacandona, Mexico. Biotropica, 44, 105–113.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chivers, D. J. (1994). Functional anatomy of the gastrointestinal tract. In A. G. Davies & J. F. Oates (Eds.), Colobine monkeys: Their ecology, behavior and evolution (pp. 205–227). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Clink, D. J., Dillis, C., Feilen, K. L., Beaudrot, L., & Marshall, A. J. (2017). Dietary diversity, feeding selectivity, and responses to fruit scarcity of two sympatric Bornean primates (Hylobates albibarbis and Presbytis rubicunda rubida). PLoS ONE, 12(3), e0173369.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Cords, M. (1987). Mixed-species associations of Cercopithecus monkeys in the Kakamega Forest, Kenya. University of California Publications in Zoology No. 117. Berkeley: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Crooks, K. R., Burdett, C. L., Theobald, D. M., King, S. R., Di Marco, M., et al (2017). Quantification of habitat fragmentation reveals extinction risk in terrestrial mammals. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA, 114, 7635–7640.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dasilva, G. L. (1989). The ecology of the western black and white colobus (Colobus polykomos polykomos Zimmermann 1780) on a Riverine Island in southeastern Sierra Leone. PhD thesis, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK

  • Dasilva, G. L. (1994). Diet of Colobus polykomos on Tiwai Island: Selection of food in relation to its seasonal abundance and nutritional quality. International Journal of Primatology, 15, 655–680.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Davies, A. G., Bennett, E. L., & Waterman, P. G. (1988). Food selection by two South-East Asian colobine monkeys (Presbytis rubicunda and Presbytis melalophos) in relation to plant chemistry. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 34, 33–56.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • de Jong, Y. A., Butynski, T. M., & Oates, J. F. (2019). Colobus guereza. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2019: e.T5143A17944705. Accessed on February 24, 2020.

  • de Luna, A. G., Link, A., Montes, A., Alfonso, F., Mendieta, L., & Di Fiore, A. (2017). Increased folivory in brown spider monkeys Ateles hybridus living in a fragmented forest in Colombia. Endangered Species Research, 32, 123–134.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dessie, G. (2007). Forest decline in south central Ethiopia: Extent history and process. PhD thesis, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden.

  • Di Fiore, A. (2004). Diet and feeding ecology of woolly monkeys in a western Amazonian rain forest. International Journal of Primatology, 25, 767–801.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dunbar, R. I. M. (1987). Habitat quality, population dynamics, and group composition in a colobus monkey (Colobus guereza). International Journal of Primatology, 8, 299–329.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dunbar, R. I. M., & Dunbar, E. P. (1974). Ecology and population dynamics of Colobus guereza in Ethiopia. Folia Primatologica, 21, 188–208.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dunbar, R. I. M., & Dunbar, E. P. (1976). Contrasts in social structure among black-and-white colobus monkey groups. Animal Behaviour, 24, 84–92.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dunham, N. T. (2017). Feeding ecology and dietary flexibility of Colobus angolensis palliatus in relation to habitat disturbance. International Journal of Primatology, 38, 553–571.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • FAO. (2016). State of the world’s forests 2016. Forests and agriculture: land-use challenges and opportunities. Rome, Italy: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

  • Fashing, P. J. (1999). The behavioral ecology of an African colobine monkey: Diet, range use, and patterns of intergroup aggression in eastern black-and-white colobus monkeys (Colobus guereza). PhD thesis, Columbia University, New York, NY.

  • Fashing, P. J. (2001). Feeding ecology of guerezas in the Kakamega Forest, Kenya: The importance of Moraceae fruit in their diet. International Journal of Primatology, 22, 579–609.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fashing, P. J. (2004). Mortality trends in the African cherry (Prunus africana) and the implications for colobus monkeys (Colobus guereza) in Kakamega Forest, Kenya. Biological Conservation, 120, 449–459.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fashing, P. J., & Cords, M. (2000). Diurnal primate densities and biomass in the Kakamega Forest: An evaluation of census methods and a comparison with other forests. American Journal of Primatology, 50, 139–152.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fashing, P. J., Forrestel, A., Scully, C., & Cords, M. (2004). Long-term tree population dynamics and their implications for the conservation of the Kakamega Forest, Kenya. Biodiversity and Conservation, 13, 753–771.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fashing, P. J., & Oates, J. F. (2013). Colobus guereza. In J. Kingdon, D. Happold, & T. Butynski (Eds.), Mammals of Africa (pp. 111–119). London: Bloomsbury Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fimbel, C., Vedder, A., Dierenfeld, E., & Mulindahabi, F. (2001). An ecological basis for large group size in Colobus angolensis in the Nyungwe Forest, Rwanda. African Journal of Ecology, 39, 83–92.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fleury, M. C., & Gautier-Hion, A. (1999). Seminomadic ranging in a population of black colobus (Colobus satanas) in Gabon and its ecological correlates. International Journal of Primatology, 20, 491–509.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fournier, L. (1974). Un método cuantitativo para la medición de las características fenológicas en árboles. Turrialba, 24, 422–423.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ganas, J., Ortmann, S., & Robbins, M. M. (2009). Food choices of the mountain gorilla in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda: The influence of nutrients, phenolics and availability. Journal of Tropical Ecology, 25, 123–134.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gautier-Hion, A., Gautier, J.-P., & Moungazi, A. (1997). Do black colobus in mixed-species groups benefit from increased foraging. Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences Vie, 320, 67–71.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gebrehiwot, S. G., Bewket, W., Gardenas, A. I., & Bishop, K. (2014). Forest cover change over four decades in the Blue Nile Basin, Ethiopia: Comparison of three watersheds. Regional Environmental Change, 14, 253–266.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gillespie, T. R., & Chapman, C. A. (2008). Forest fragmentation, the decline of an endangered primate, and changes in host-parasite interactions relative to an unfragmented forest. American Journal of Primatology, 70, 222–230.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Girma, Z., Mamo, Y., Mengesha, G., Verma, A., & Asfaw, T. (2017). Seasonal abundance and habitat use of bird species in and around Wondo Genet Forest, south-central Ethiopia. Ecology and Evolution, 7, 3397–3405.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Grimes, K. (2000). Guereza dietary and behavioural patterns at the Entebbe Botanical Gardens. MA thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada.

  • Harris, T. R. (2005). Roaring, intergroup aggression, and feeding competition in black and white colobus monkeys (Colobus guereza) at Kanyawara, Kibale National Park, Uganda. PhD thesis, Yale University, New Haven, CT.

  • Harrison, M. J. S. (1986). Feeding ecology of black colobus, Colobus satanas, in central Gabon. In J. G. Else & P. C. Lee (Eds.), Primate ecology and conservation (pp. 31–37). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hill, J. L., & Curran, P. J. (2003). Area, shape and isolation of tropical forest fragments: Effects on tree species diversity and implication for conservation. Journal of Biogeogeography, 30, 242–254.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hunde, T., Duguma, D., Gizachew, B., Mamushet, D., & Teketay, D. (2003). Growth and form of Eucalyptus grandis provenances at Wondo Genet, southern Ethiopia. Australian Forestry, 66, 170–175.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Irwin, M. T. (2008). Feeding ecology of diademed sifakas (Propithecus diadema) in forest fragments and continuous forest. International Journal of Primatology, 29, 95–115.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kebede, M., Kanninen, M., Yirdaw, E., & Lemenih, M. (2013). Vegetation structural characteristics and topographic factors in the remnant moist Afromontane forest of Wondo Genet, south central Ethiopia. Journal of Forestry Research, 24, 419–430.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kool, K. M. (1989). Behavioral ecology of the silver leaf monkey, Trachypithecus auratus sondaicus in the Pangandaran Nature Reserve, West Java, Indonesia. PhD thesis, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.

  • Kool, K. M. (1993). The diet and feeding behaviour of the silver leaf monkey (Trachypithecus auratus sondaicus) in Indonesia. International Journal of Primatology, 14, 667–700.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Korstjens, A. H., Schippers, E. P., Nijssen, E. C., van Oirschot, B. M. A., Krebs, M., et al (2007). The influence of food on the social organisation of three colobine species. In R. Noë, S. McGraw, & K. Zuberbühler (Eds.), Monkeys of the Taï Forest: An African primate community (pp. 72–108). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Krebs, C. J. (2014). Ecological methodology, 3rd ed.. Available at https://www.zoology.ubc.ca/~krebs/books.html

  • LaFleur, M., & Gould, L. (2009). Feeding outside the forest: The importance of crop raiding and an invasive weed in the diet of gallery forest ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta) following a cyclone at the Beza Mahafaly Special Reserve, Madagascar. Folia Primatologica, 80, 233–246.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Liu, Z., Liu, G., Roos, C., Wang, Z., Xiang, Z., et al (2015). Implications of genetics and current protected areas for conservation of 5 endangered primates in China. Conservation Biology, 29, 1508–1517.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Maibeche, Y., Moali, A., Yahi, N., & Menard, N. (2015). Is diet flexibility an adaptive life trait for relictual and peri-urban populations of the endangered primate Macaca sylvanus? PLoS ONE, 10, e0118596.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Marsh, L. K., & Chapman, C. A., Eds. (2013). Primates in fragments: Complexity and resilience. Developments in Primatology: Progress and Prospects. New York: Springer Science+Business Media.

  • Matsuda, I., Ihobe, H., Tashiro, Y., Yumoto, T., Baranga, D., & Hashimoto, C. (2020). The diet and feeding behavior of the black-and-white colobus (Colobus guereza) in the Kalinzu Forest, Uganda. Primates, 61, 473–484.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • McKey, D. B., Gartlan, J. S., Waterman, P. G., & Choo, G. M. (1981). Food selection by black colobus monkeys (Colobus satanas) in relation to food chemistry. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 16, 115–146.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mekonnen, A., Fashing, P. J., Bekele, A., Hernandez-Aguilar, R. A., Rueness, E. K., et al (2017). Impacts of habitat loss and fragmentation on the activity budget, ranging ecology and habitat use of Bale monkeys (Chlorocebus djamdjamensis) in the southern Ethiopian Highlands. American Journal of Primatology, 79, e22644.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mekonnen, A., Fashing, P. J., Bekele, A., Hernandez-Aguilar, R. A., Rueness, E. K., & Stenseth, N. C. (2018). Dietary flexibility of Bale monkeys (Chlorocebus djamdjamensis) in southern Ethiopia: Effects of habitat degradation and life in fragments. BMC Ecology, 18, 4.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Ménard, N., Motsch, P., Delahaye, A., Saintvanne, A., Le Flohic, G., et al (2014). Effect of habitat quality on diet flexibility in Barbary macaques. American Journal of Primatology, 76, 679–693.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Milich, K. M., Stumpf, R. M., Chambers, J. M., & Chapman, C. A. (2014). Female red colobus monkeys maintain their densities through flexible feeding strategies in logged forests in Kibale National park, Uganda. American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 154, 52–60.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Miller, A., Judge, D., Uwingeneye, G., Ndayishimiye, D., & Grueter, C. C. (2020). Diet and use of fallback foods by Rwenzori black-and-white colobus (Colobus angolensis ruwenzorii) in Rwanda: Implications for supergroup formation. International Journal of Primatology, 41, 434–457.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Milton, K. (1979). Factors influencing leaf choice by howler monkeys: A test of some hypotheses of food selection by generalist herbivores. American Naturalist, 114, 362–378.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Newton, P. (1992). Feeding and ranging patterns of forest Hanuman langurs (Presbytis entellus). International Journal of Primatology, 13, 245–285.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nguyen, N. (2013). Primate behavioural endocrinology. In E. Sterling, N. Bynum, & M. Blair (Eds.), Primate ecology and conservation: A handbook of techniques (pp. 224–237). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Oates, J. F. (1974). The ecology and behaviour of the black-and-white colobus monkey (Colobus guereza Rüppell) in East Africa. PhD thesis, University of London, London.

  • Oates, J. F. (1977). The guereza and its food. In T. H. Clutton-Brock (Ed.), Primate ecology: Studies of feeding and ranging behavior in lemurs, monkeys and apes (pp. 275–321). New York: Academic Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Oates, J. F. (1988). The diet of the olive colobus monkey, Procolobus verus, in Sierra Leone. International Journal of Primatology, 9, 457–478.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oates, J. F. (1994). The natural history of African colobines. In A. G. Davies & J. F. Oates (Eds.), Colobine monkeys: Their ecology, behavior and evolution (pp. 75–128). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Oftedal, O. T. (1991). The nutritional consequences of foraging in primates: The relationship of nutrient intakes to nutrient requirements. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London B: Biological Sciences, 334, 161–170.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Oksanen, J., Kindt, R., Legendre, P., O’Hara, B., Stevens, M. H. H., et al. (2007). The vegan package: Community ecology package.

  • Onderdonk, D. A., & Chapman, C. A. (2000). Coping with forest fragmentation: The primates of Kibale National Park. Uganda. International Journal of Primatology, 21, 587–611.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Plumptre, A. J. (2006). The diets, preferences, and overlap of the primate community in the Budongo Forest Reserve, Uganda: Effects of logging on primate diets. N. E. Newton-Fisher, H. Notman, J. D. Paterson, & V. Reynolds (Eds.), Primates of western Uganda (pp. 345–371). Developments in Primatology: Progerss and Prospects. New York: Springer Science+Business Media.

  • R Core Team (2019). R: A language and environment for statistical computing. Vienna, Austria: R Foundation for Statistical Computing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ratsimbazafy, J. H., Ramarosandratana, H. V., & Zaonarivelo, R. V. (2002). How do black and white ruffed lemurs still survive in a highly disturbed habitat? Lemur News, 7, 7–10.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rivera, A., & Calmé, S. (2006). Forest fragmentation and its effects on the feeding ecology of black howlers (Alouatta palliata) from the Calakmul area in Mexico. In A. Estrada, P. A. Garber, M. Pavelka, & L. Luecke (Eds.), New perspectives in the study of Mesoamerican primates: Distribution, ecology, behavior, and conservation (pp. 189–213). New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Rodríguez-Luna, E., Domínguez-Domínguez, L. E., Morales Mávil, J., & Martínez-Morales, M. (2003). Foraging strategy changes in Alouatta palliata mexicana troop released on an island. In L. K. Marsh (Ed.), Primates in fragments: Ecology and conservation (pp. 229–250). New York: Kluwer Academics/Plenum Publishers.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Saj, T. L., & Sicotte, P. (2007). Predicting the competitive regime of female Colobus vellerosus from the distribution of food resources. International Journal of Primatolology, 28, 315–336.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schel, A. M. (2009). Anti-predator behaviour of guereza colobus monkeys (Colobus guereza). PhD thesis, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, Scotland.

  • Sharma, N., Madhusudan, M. D., & Sinha, A. (2014). Local and landscape correlates of primate distribution and persistence in the remnant lowland rainforests of the upper Brahmaputra Valley, Northeastern India. Conservation Biology, 28, 95–106.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sharma, R., Arora, N., Goossens, B., Nater, A., Morf, N., et al (2012). Effective population size dynamics and the demographic collapse of Bornean orangutans. PLoS ONE, 7, 1–11.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Soma, T. (2006). Tradition and novelty: Lemur catta feeding strategy on introduced tree species at Berenty reserve. In A. Jolly, N. Koyama, H. Rasamimanana, & R. W. Sussman (Eds.), Ring-tailed lemur biology (pp. 141–159). New York: Springer Science+Business Media.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Starin, E. D. (1991). Socioecology of the red colobus monkey in the Gambia with particular reference to female-male differences and transfer patterns. PhD thesis, City University of New York, New York.

  • Steenbeek, R., & van Schaik, C. P. (2001). Competition and group size in Thomas’s langurs (Presbytis thomasi): The folivore paradox revisited. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, 49, 100–110.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stevenson, P. R., Beltrán, M. L., Quiñones, M. J., & Ahumada, J. A. (2015). Differences in home range, activity patterns and diet of red howler monkeys in a continuous forest and a forest fragment in Colombia. La Revista de la Academia Colombiana de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales, 39, 503–513.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stoehr, A. M. (1999). Are significance thresholds appropriate for the study of animal behaviour? Animal Behaviour, 57, F22–F25.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Tálamo, A., & Caziani, S. M. (2003). Variation in woody vegetation among sites with different disturbance histories in the Argentine Chaco. Forest Ecology and Management, 184, 79–92.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tesfaye, D., Fashing, P. J., Bekele, A., Mekonnen, A., & Atickem, A. (2013). Ecological flexibility in Boutourlini’s blue monkeys (Cercopithecus mitis boutourlinii) in Jibat Forest, Ethiopia: A comparison of habitat use, ranging behavior, and diet in intact and fragmented forest. International Journal of Primatology, 34, 615–640.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tolessa, T., Senbeta, F., & Kidane, M. (2017). The impact of land use/land cover change on ecosystem services in the central Highlands of Ethiopia. Ecosystem Services, 23, 47–54.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tutin, C. (1999). Fragmented living: Behavioural ecology of primates in a forest fragment in the Lopé Reserve, Gabon. Primates, 40, 249–265.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Vedder, A., & Fashing, P. J. (2002). Diet of a 300-member Angolan colobus monkey (Colobus angolensis) supergroup in the Nyungwe Forest, Rwanda. American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 117(34), 159–160.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wasserman, M. D., & Chapman, C. A. (2003). Determinants of colobine monkey abundance: The importance of food energy, protein and fiber content. Journal of Animal Ecology, 72, 650–659.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wong, S. N. P., Saj, T. L., & Sicotte, P. (2006). Comparison of habitat quality and diet of Colobus vellerosus in forest fragments in Ghana. Primates, 47, 365–373.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Yalden, D. W., Largen, M. J., & Kock, D. (1977). Catalogue of the mammals of Ethiopia 3. Primates. Monitore Zoologico Italiana, 9, 1–52.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yeager, C. P., Silver, S. C., & Dierenfeld, E. S. (1997). Mineral and phytochemical influences on foliage selection by the proboscis monkey (Nasalis larvatus). American Journal of Primatology, 41, 117–128.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Yi, Y., Fichtel, C., Kim, E., & Choe, J. C. (2020). Impacts of intergroup interactions on intragroup behavioral changes in Javan gibbons (Hylobates moloch). International Journal of Primatology, 41, 363–381.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yirdaw, E. (2001). Diversity of naturally-regenerated native woody species in forest plantations in the Ethiopian Highlands. New Forests, 22, 159–177.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zinner, D., Tesfaye, D., Stenseth, N. C., Bekele, A., Mekonnen, A., et al (2019). Is Colobus guereza gallarum a valid endemic Ethiopian taxon? Primate Biology, 6, 7–16.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

D. Tesfaye thanks Rufford Small Grants Foundation, Primate Conservation, Inc., Arba Minch University, and the American Society of Primatologists for funding his field research as well as Idea Wild for donating several essential pieces of research equipment. P. J. Fashing thanks San Diego Zoo for their generous support of his long-term research in Ethiopia. We are grateful to the Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES) at the University of Oslo, Department of Biology at Arba Minch University, and Department of Anthropology at California State University Fullerton for logistical support. We thank the Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority for granting us permission to carry out this study in Ethiopia. We are grateful to Belay Melesse, Aschalew Adudga, Bekele Alemu, and Abraham Demisse for their assistance in the field. Lastly, we thank the two handling editors, Addisu Mekonnen and Joanna Setchell, and three anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments on this manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway

    Dereje Tesfaye, Peter J. Fashing, Anagaw Atickem Meshesha & Nils Chr. Stenseth

  2. Department of Anthropology and Environmental Studies Program, California State University Fullerton, Fullerton, CA, USA

    Peter J. Fashing

  3. Department of Zoological Sciences, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

    Anagaw Atickem Meshesha & Afework Bekele

Authors
  1. Dereje Tesfaye
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Peter J. Fashing
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Anagaw Atickem Meshesha
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Afework Bekele
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Nils Chr. Stenseth
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

DT, PJF, AA, AB, and NCS conceived and designed this study; DT carried out the fieldwork and analyzed the data, and DT, PJF, AA, AB, and NCS wrote the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Dereje Tesfaye.

Additional information

Handling Editor: Joanna Setchell

Supplementary Information

ESM 1

(DOCX 115 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Tesfaye, D., Fashing, P.J., Meshesha, A.A. et al. Feeding Ecology of the Omo River Guereza (Colobus guereza guereza) in Habitats with Varying Levels of Fragmentation and Disturbance in the Southern Ethiopian Highlands. Int J Primatol 42, 64–88 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10764-020-00189-w

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10764-020-00189-w

Keywords

Search

Navigation