- NET Web Desk
A team of researchers from the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) have recently recorded a new addition to mammals of India : the White-Cheeked Macaque (Macaca leucogenys) from central Arunachal Pradesh’s West Siang district, about 197 kms away from China.
The species was discovered in 2015 by a group of Chinese scientists from the Modog region in southeastern Tibet. Considered a breakthrough in context of primates, White-Cheeked Macaques differs from other macaques found in the region through its white cheeks, long and thick hairs on the neck area, and a longer tail.
The result of this study — Serendipitous discovery of white-cheeked macaque (Macaca leucogenys) from Arunachal Pradesh, India is published in an international peer-reviewed journal Animal Gene.
“We report White-Cheeked Macaque from West Siang about 197 km away from China. Unfortunately, White Cheeked Macaque has not been yet included in the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 of India and therefore, the present study laid the foundation to promote field studies in Central Arunachal Pradesh to delineate distribution boundary and population size of White Cheeked Macaque in Arunachal Pradesh,” the paper authored by nine scientists from ZSI said.
According to The Hindu report, the species has not been sighted or reported in India after its photographic capture from Anjaw district, Arunachal Pradesh in 2015.
A team of scientists from ZSI led by Mukesh Thakur were searching for red pandas and Arunachal Macaques in central Arunachal Pradesh when they unknowingly collected a few faecal samples that turned out to be of White-Cheeked Macaques after DNA analysis.
