Wednesday, October 27, 2010

New Monkey Species Discovered!

     A new species of monkeys have been discovered in northern Burma. These types of monkeys are known as snub-nosed monkeys, obviously because of their uniquely shaped nose. When it rains, their upturned nostrils fill with water, which causes the monkeys to sneeze. The Primate Conservation Programme have noticed that it's very easy to find the stub-nosed monkeys when it's raining, because they can hear them sneezing.
    Unfortunately, this species of monkeys are "critically endangered, with an estimated population of 300 or less." Other species of monkeys are known to be in Vietnam and China, while snub-nosed monkeys were the first to be discovered in Burma. AFP have recently reported that this monkey species is geographically separated from other species because the snub-nosed monkey's habitat, which is located in an area in Kachin State, is cut off by the Salween and Mekong rivers. Unfortunately, it's habitat is exposed by deforestation, which is due to logging. Deforestation in this specific area is caused by local and Chinese companies operating illegally. Not only is this a problem, but hunting is a major problem as well. Providing better enforcement is greatly needed to withstand "the illegal international wildlife trade."
    I personally think that more should be done to stop hunting and deforestation in the snub-nosed monkey's habitat. With only 300 snub-nosed monkeys living, more should definitely be done to stop them from becoming more endangered. This topic relates to class because with a new species discovered, there are more animals located on the earth. Therefore, the population is increasing, instead of decreasing.

3 comments:

  1. Yeah I heard about this new species. Its interesting.

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  2. I deffinately agree with that fact that this new species should stop being hunted by people. Hopefully some are protected by certain environments or maybe people could keep some in zoos. I think this would be the safest place for them for the time being so that they can reproduce and hopefully keep their population growing.

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  3. I think it's really great that a new species of monkey has been discovered but it's sad how there's only about 300 of them left.

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