CONSERVATION STATUS
CITES: Appendix II (http://www.cites.org)
IUCN Red List: A. sara, A. seniculus, A. s. seniculus: LC; A. s. juara: DD;
A. s. insulanus: VU B1ab(iii); D1 (http://www.redlist.org).
CITES lists only two species of red howler, A. seniculus, of which
A. macconnelli and A. s. arctoidea are considered synonyms, and A. sara which is
considered synonymous with A. s. sara. All species assessed by CITES are listed
in Appendix II which lists species that are not necessarily now threatened with
extinction but that may become so unless trade is closely controlled
(http://www.cites.org).
Photo: Luiz Claudio Marigo
IUCN Red List classifies A. sara, A. seniculus and A. s. seniculus as Least
Concern (LC). This means that they have been evaluated against the criteria and
do not qualify for Critically Endangered, Endangered, Vulnerable or Near
Threatened. Species that are Least Concern (LC) are typically widespread and
abundant. A. s. juara is listed as Data Deficient (DD) which means that
appropriate data about abundance and distribution is lacking and as a result
there is inadequate information to make a direct or indirect assessment of its
risk of extinction based on its distribution and/or population status.
A. s. insulanus, here considered a synonym for A. macconnelli, is listed as
Vulnerable (VU B1ab(iii);D1). This classification means that it is considered
to be facing a high risk of extinction in the wild and its extent of occurrence
is estimated to be less than 20,000 km2 (7722.0 mi2), and estimates indicate
that populations are severely fragmented or known to exist at no more than 10
locations in addition to a continuing decline, observed, inferred or projected
in its area, extent and/or quality of habitat. Also, this classification means
that the population is very small and that the total population size is
estimated to number fewer than 1000 mature individuals (http://www.redlist.org).
Red howler monkeys are adaptable and are capable of living in small patches
of forest (Phillips & Abercrombie 2003). A population can live in 1 sq. km
(0.4 sq. mi) forest fragments, one group can survive in a 0.1 sq. km (.04 sq. mi)
fragment and a 0.01 sq. km (.004 sq. mi) forest fragment can possibly support red
howlers if they are able to alter their ecology somewhat (Gilbert 2003). In
addition, because of their ability to disperse, they are resilient in areas
where other primates have disappeared from a particular habitat
(Hernández-Camacho & Cooper 1976; Defler 2004).
CONSERVATION THREATS
Threat: Human-Induced Habitat Loss and Degradation
The most pressing threat to the red howler, like other primates is habitat
destruction (Defler 2004). Because seasonally flooded forests are inhabited by
red howlers, they have the potential to be adversely affected by both the
damming of rivers as well as logging along the edges of rivers (Ayres 1982).
In Trinidad, where A. macconnelli populations are considered vulnerable by
the IUCN Red List, the main threats to the habitats of the species are illegal
logging, forest clearance for agriculture and destruction resulting from oil
exploration (Hsu & Agoramoorthy 1996).
The building of hydroelectric dams can also profoundly alter red howler
habitat. In one case of a dam in Venezuela, howlers formerly inhabiting both
sides of a river are now restricted to islands in a catchment lake for the dam
resulting in their isolation from other populations and the disappearance of
some groups (Norconk 1997).
Threat: Harvesting (hunting/gathering)
Howler monkeys are one of the most widely hunted primate taxa in the
neotropics and are choice prey items even in areas which are only marginally
under hunting pressure (Peres 2000). However, the degree of hunting of red
howlers is variable between locations (Hernández-Camacho & Cooper
1976; Defler 2004). In habitats in the western Brazilian Amazonian seasonally
flooded forests, red howlers are a preferred subsistence prey during high water,
because fishing is precluded by the floods (Peres 1997a).
In Trinidad, hunting is a significant threat to red howlers even though it is
illegal. In areas around wildlife sanctuaries on the island, up to 85% of
individuals interviewed admitted to eating or hunting monkeys for meat (Hsu
& Agoramoorthy 1996).
In Colombia, red howlers are also sometimes killed and taken for their
enlarged hyoid, which is used as a drinking vessel to treat goiters. A minor
hunting threat to the red howler is killing for its skin, but this occurs only
occasionally (Hernández-Camacho & Cooper 1976).
Threat: Pollution
Oil pollution has the potential to threaten red howler populations on
Trinidad, as pipelines and allocation wells leak into the local water supply.
Large mammals drink from the water supply and thus red howlers might potentially
affected by such leaks (Hsu & Agoramoorthy 1996).
Threat: Intrinsic Factors
Red howlers are susceptible to a number of intestinal parasites, including
those of the genera Strongyloides, Trichuris, Chilomastix, Blastocystis and
Iodamoeba which have the potential to cause parasitic infections and potentially
represent a threat to members of the species (Phillips et al. 2004). They are
also susceptible to a number of other maladies in their natural habitat (de
Thoisy et al. 2001).
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Content last modified: November 26, 2007
Written by Kurt Gron. Reviewed by Carolyn Crockett.
Cite this page as:
Gron KJ. 2007 November 26. Primate Factsheets: Red howler (Alouatta seniculus) Conservation. <http://pin.primate.wisc.edu/factsheets/entry/red_howler/cons>. Accessed 2008 July 4.
