Pelage colour change in Hainan gibbon(Nomascus hainanus)
All known species of the genus Nomascus have distinct sexual dichromatism in adulthood.The changes in their pelage colour are used as an important indicator of individuals'sexes,ages,and ontogenetic stages.This study is focused on Hainan gibbons(Nomascus hainanus),the rarest primate in the world,and combines the data of circa 2 years of continuous field observations and previously collected image data to describe the patterns of pelage colour changes over two crucial stages of their life history:natal coats to juvenile pelages and female fur colour changes during sexual maturity.The results show that monitoring and documenting the'crest'traits,the overall fur colour,and the timing of colour change occurring at the different body parts could operatively assist in determining the age group of an individual,estimating the birth season of an infant,and identifying the fertile females in relatively complex environments,especially in dense rainforest.It was found that the development of the pelage colour change of N.hainanus in infancy was more similar to that of Cao Vit gibbon(Nomascus nasutus).This supports the latest and accepted phylogenetic position of Hainan gibbons.We also discussed the potential interpretations of the adaptation of their pelage colour change.We ad-vocated that the practicable suggestions described in this study should be integrated with automated data collecting sys-tems,which might help increase the efficiency and accuracy of the population monitoring and conservation of the endan-gered crested gibbons in the future.
万方数据
维普
