Unknown monkey found in Borneo that may be a hybrid of two distantly related species
Miscellaneous / / May 05, 2022
These animals don't normally interbreed in the wild, but something went wrong.
A 'mysterious monkey' has been discovered on the island of Borneo in Malaysia, which scientists believe is a rare hybrid of two different species competing for forest space.
Hybrids in nature are not so rare, but this case is special, since the animal became a descendant of two completely different species that are very distant relatives. We are talking about proboscis (Nasalis larvatus) and silver langurs (Trachypithecus cristatus).
Adult proboscis have pinkish faces with elongated noses, while adult langurs have black faces with shorter, flatter noses. Also, proboscis is noticeably larger - males can grow up to 76 cm and weigh up to 24 kg. Langurs are up to 56 cm and only 6.6 kg. Researchers believe that large proboscis may simply crowd out smaller males of another species.
Scientists have not yet been able to properly study the new species of monkey due to restrictions on visiting the Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary in Sabah, where they found the hybrid. Therefore, for now, zoologists can only draw conclusions based on photographs of the animal, which began to appear on social networks back in 2017.
The monkey was originally photographed at a young age, but more recent images show that the animal has grown up and may have offspring of its own.
Scientists hope confirm the genotype of the hybrid in future studies as soon as the restrictions of the reserve related to COVID-19 are lifted.
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