Cercopithecus sclateri: Sclater's Guenon

Sclater's Guenon - Cercopithecus sclateri
( Pocock, 1904 )

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Subspecies:	Unknown
Est. World Population:

CITES Status:	NOT LISTED
IUCN Status:	Endangered
U.S. ESA Status:	NOT LISTED

Body Length:
Tail Length:
Shoulder Height:
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Top Speed:
Jumping Ability:	(Horizontal)

Life Span:	in the Wild
Life Span:	in Captivity

Sexual Maturity:	(Females)
Sexual Maturity:	(Males)
Litter Size:
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Habitat:

The original habitat of Sclater’s Monkey is moist tropical lowland forest, but due to severe habitat degradation, this species now persists in remnant secondary, gallery/riparian and freshwater swamp forests. The species is also found in marginal forest and farm-bush in communities where monkeys are regarded as sacred (Oates et al. 1992, Tooze 1995, Baker 2005). Sclater’s Monkey is likely omnivorous, with a diet similar to other members of the C. cephus group: mostly fruits, insects and young foliage (Oates and Baker 2013).

Range:

This species is endemic to southern Nigeria. It ranges from the eastern Niger Delta in Bayelsa State east to the Cross River, and north to Enugu and Ebonyi States; the most northerly known populations occur in southern Anambra-Enugu States and central Ebonyi State (Baker and Olubode 2008). Sclater’s Monkey was feared extinct until it was sighted southwest of Oguta, Imo State, in 1988 (Oates and Anadu 1989). Additional populations were subsequently discovered in the early to mid-1990s (Oates et al. 1992; Tooze 1995, 1996). In a 2004 regional survey, the species was located in several sites where it had not been previously recorded (Baker 2005, Baker and Olubode 2008). Across its range, this species has generally been recorded in fragmented, degraded forests (Oates et al. 1992, Tooze 1995, Baker and Olubode 2008).

Conservation:

This species is currently listed as Class B under the African Convention and under Appendix II of CITES.

There are no formally protected areas in the range of Sclater’s Monkey. Important conservation measures suggested by Baker (2005) include: 1) elevating the species to Schedule I of the Nigerian Endangered Species Act (this change may not be considered unless the species is elevated to CITES Appendix I); 2) raising awareness about the species and its uniquely Nigerian status through publicity and education; and 3) enhancing protection of key forests, including the Edumanom Forest Reserve in Bayelsa State, Upper Orashi Forest Reserve in Rivers State and the Stubbs Creek Forest Reserve in Akwa Ibom State.

Communities where Sclater’s Monkey receives cultural protection (through social taboos) are also very important, although forest cover in these sites has been greatly reduced over time. These include Ikot Uso Akpan and other communities in the Itam region (Akwa Ibom State), Lagwa (Imo State) and the Akpugoeze community complex (Enugu State). In Lagwa and Akpugoeze, previous and existing conservation measures include school-based awareness programmes, stakeholder workshops, documentation and publishing of folklore and oral histories related to the cultural value of monkeys, and population and forest monitoring (Baker 2013; Baker et al. 2009; 2014a,b; 2018). Forest restoration and conservation awareness efforts have also been conducted in Ikot Uso Akpan (Jacob et al. 2013). Development of small-scale ecotourism in these communities should be explored, given how readily monkeys can be observed at these sites.

Other potential areas for enhanced protection are the Niger floodplain and Osomari Forest Reserve (Oates et al. 1992), as well as the Blue River (Azumini, Abia State) and Enyong Creek/Ikpa River (Akwa Ibom State) (Tooze 1995).