Ecological, Morphological and Demographical Variations of Hanuman Langur (Semnopithecus spp.) Species complex in Peninsular India and their Implications to Taxonomy

Abstract

To bring greater resolution in Hanuman langur taxonomy, current thesis attempted to map the congruence between some of the ecological, morphological, and demographical characters of Hanuman langurs of peninsular India. In doing so the thesis, ultimately aimed to correlate which of the existing classification scheme best explained the taxonomic position of these taxonomically challenged langurs. With this objective the study was conducted in peninsular India (8–21°N, 73–78°E), covering the states of Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamilnadu in India, as well as some parts of northern Sri Lanka opportunistically. The study also included some Northern type Hanuman langurs as controls from parts of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Orissa. As far as possible study included the type localities mentioned in various classification schemes