PZ Myers. 2004 Dec 14. Macaca munzala, the Arunachal Macaque. <http://pharyngula.org/index/weblog/macaca_munzala_the_arunachal_macaque/>. Accessed 2008 Dec 01.

Posted on M00o93H7pQ09L8X1t49cHY01Z5j4TT91fGfr on Tuesday, December 14, 2004

Macaca munzala, the Arunachal Macaque

arunachal macaque

A new species of macaque, Macaca munzala or the Arunachal macaque, has been discovered in northeastern India. This is an incredibly rare event—the last new macaque species was found 101 years ago, and it's been 49 years since any new primate was discovered in Asia. "Discovered" may be not quite the right word; the inhabitants of this region of India are entirely familiar with it, and have been shooting it for its habit of raiding crops, and apparently it is a thriving species found in multiple populations. It had so far escaped the notice of scientists, at any rate, since it lives in an out-of-the-way part of the world and resides at high altitudes, above 2000 m.

More information is available at the Nature Conservation Foundation, including many more pictures.

Posted by PZ Myers on 12/14 at 11:19 AM
Science • Organisms • 0 Trackbacks • Other weblogs • Permalink
  1. My vote for next introduced NA species. Ever since I had a monkey throw a pine cone at me in N. Pakistan, I've thought we should have primates in our mountains. Who would they compete with except the Olsen Twins for cuteness? We're not doing the subsistence agriculture thing any more, so we can share a small amount of forage. Think of the tourist benefits to communities.

    Oh, and then there's the possibility of a season....
    #: Posted by  on  12/14  at  12:37 PM
  2. I have no problem with the word "discovery." It was previously unknown to science, and now it is known. It was also discovered many years ago by the people who live in the area. And when Zorg from a planet a hundred light years away lands, he can discover it too, since his people would have been previously unaware of the arunachal macaques.

    ----
    Anti-spam: replace "user" with "harlequin2"
    #: Posted by  on  12/14  at  01:06 PM
  3. Of course, that would depend on whether everyone uses the same deffinition... ;)
    #: Posted by  on  12/14  at  02:42 PM
  4. And, of course, we know that Noah, that well-known Asian explorer, must have discovered it .....
    #: Posted by  on  12/14  at  04:39 PM
  5. More news about the discovery. A few words of appreciation for the scientists involved please?

    http://www.hindu.com/2004/12/17/stories/2004121705042000.htm
    #: Posted by  on  12/16  at  02:39 PM
  6. macaca munzala
    #: Posted by  on  12/17  at  03:24 AM
  7. I'm not a biologist, but normally valid new species require a holotype to be deposited in a museum collection (ie a dead individual). How do they get round this if they can't find a naturally-dead specimen? It would seem a shame to shoot one specially - you might make a species extinct at the exact same time as describing it!
    #: Posted by  on  12/17  at  05:47 AM