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On a new species of titi monkey (Primates: Plecturocebus Byrne et al., 2016), from Alta Floresta, southern Amazon, Brazil

Boubli, JP; Byrne, H; da Silva, MNF; Silva-Júnior, J; Costa Araújo, R; Bertuol, F; Gonçalves, J; de Melo, FR; Rylands, AB; Mittermeier, RA; Silva, FE; Nash, SD; Canale, G; Alencar, RdM; Rossi, RV; Carneiro, J; Sampaio, I; Farias, IP; Schneider, H; Hrbek, T

Authors

H Byrne

MNF da Silva

J Silva-Júnior

R Costa Araújo

F Bertuol

J Gonçalves

FR de Melo

AB Rylands

RA Mittermeier

FE Silva

SD Nash

G Canale

RdM Alencar

RV Rossi

J Carneiro

I Sampaio

IP Farias

H Schneider

T Hrbek



Abstract

The taxonomy of the titi monkeys (Callicebinae) has recently received considerable attention. It is now recognised that this subfamily is composed of three genera with 33 species, seven of them described since 2002. Here, we describe a new species of titi, Plecturocebus, from the municipality of Alta Floresta, Mato Grosso, Brazil. We adopt an integrative taxonomic approach that includes phylogenomic analyses, pelage characters, and locality records. A reduced representation genome-wide approach was employed to assess phylogenetic relationships among species of the eastern Amazonian clade of the Plecturocebus moloch group. Using existing records, we calculated the Extent of Occurrence (EOO) of the new species and estimated future habitat loss for the region based on predictive models. We then evaluated the species’ conservation status using the IUCN Red list categories and criteria. The new species presents a unique combination of morphological characters: (1) grey agouti colouration on the crown and dorsal parts; (2) entirely bright red-brown venter; (3) an almost entirely black tail with a pale tip; and (4) light yellow colouration of the hair on the cheeks contrasting with bright red-brown hair on the sides of the face. Our phylogenetic reconstructions based on maximum-likelihood and Bayesian methods revealed well-supported species relationships, with the Alta Floresta taxon as sister to P. moloch + P. vieirai. The species EOO is 10,166,653 ha and we predict a total habitat loss of 86% of its original forest habitat under a “business as usual” scenario in the next 24 years, making the newly discovered titi monkey a Critically Endangered species under the IUCN A3c criterion. We give the new titi monkey a specific epithet based on: (1) clear monophyly of this lineage revealed by robust genomic and mitochondrial data; (2) distinct and diagnosable pelage morphology; and (3) a well-defined geographical distribution with clear separation from other closely related taxa. Urgent conservation measures are needed to safeguard the future of this newly discovered and already critically endangered primate.

Citation

Boubli, J., Byrne, H., da Silva, M., Silva-Júnior, J., Costa Araújo, R., Bertuol, F., …Hrbek, T. (2018). On a new species of titi monkey (Primates: Plecturocebus Byrne et al., 2016), from Alta Floresta, southern Amazon, Brazil. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 132(Mar 19), 117-137. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2018.11.012

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Nov 16, 2018
Online Publication Date Nov 26, 2018
Publication Date Nov 26, 2018
Deposit Date Jan 15, 2019
Journal Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution
Print ISSN 1055-7903
Publisher Elsevier
Volume 132
Issue Mar 19
Pages 117-137
DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2018.11.012
Publisher URL https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2018.11.012
Related Public URLs https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/molecular-phylogenetics-and-evolution/vol/132/suppl/C