New Orange-Lipped Monkey Species Discovered in Congo Rainforest

Researchers have officially described a new monkey species known locally as Likweli and scientifically as Colobus congoensis, a black-furred primate distinguished by a pinkish-orange patch around its mouth. According to reporting from Earth.com and the BBC, the primate lives high in the dense tree canopy of Lomami National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Describers note it is only the fifth new African monkey species named in the past 75 years.

A Ten-Year Search in the Congo Basin Canopy

The discovery began with a single blurry photograph captured by a survey team along the Lomami River in 2008, according to Earth.com and the BBC. For a decade, that image remained an isolated clue until a November 2018 park patrol led by Jean Pierre Kapale photographed a black colobus-like monkey with pale mouth markings and a white patch beneath its tail. Following that sighting, an international research team from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the United States, and Germany launched a formal investigation involving audio recordings, photography, and field surveys across 52 nearby villages, as reported by the BBC.

Field teams recorded 114 sightings of the animal between 2018 and 2022, assembling a physical portrait of a small primate weighing roughly 15 pounds with glossy black fur, gray skin on its cheekbones, black skin around its eyes, and a bare orange-cream ring around its mouth, as detailed by Earth.com. Junior Amboko, a conservation biologist and doctoral student at Florida Atlantic University who helped document the animal’s behavior, noted that the primates are secretive and tend to climb higher into the canopy rather than flee when approached by humans.

Genetics and Evolutionary History

Physical specimens that confirmed the classification came after park guards seized three carcasses in April 2021 that were bound for the illegal bushmeat trade, according to Earth.com. Those skins and skeletons reached a museum in the United States, allowing researchers to examine whole bodies, take measurements, and extract DNA samples. Kate Detwiler, an associate professor of biological sciences at Florida Atlantic University who led the analysis with Congolese and American institutions, stated what surprised us most was the combination of deep evolutionary divergence and geographic isolation.

Genetic analysis revealed that the closest living relative of Colobus congoensis is the black colobus, located more than 700 miles away in the forests of west-central Africa. Based on the pace of DNA changes, the research team estimates that Colobus congoensis and the black colobus shared a common ancestor approximately five million years ago. Researchers published these findings in the journal PLoS One, noting that the species belongs to the thumb-less colobus group, which acts as a key herbivore playing a critical role in seed processing and forest germination.

Conservation Status and Local Recognition

Local communities have long known of the animal, though it remained undocumented by formal science until recent years. Residents in only eight of the 52 surveyed villages recognized the primate, with Balanga community members referring to it as Likweli and Mituku communities calling it kasaba nkoni, meaning the branch shaker, according to Earth.com and the BBC.

Because the primates are hunted for meat and occupy a restricted range within the Congo Basin, researchers emphasize the need for official protection now that the species is formally classified. The team plans to conduct more detailed surveys to estimate population sizes and study the behavior of Colobus congoensis within Lomami National Park.